Publication 521 - Moving Expenses - 2002 (Page 7 of 17) in pdf

2) Your household goods and personal effects are

Retirees or Survivors

packed and on the way to your home in the United

Who Move to the United States

States.

If you are a retiree who was working abroad or a survivor of

3) You leave your former home to travel to your new

a decedent who was working abroad and you move to the

home in the United States.

United States or one of its possessions, you do not have to

meet the time test, discussed earlier. However, you must

meet the requirements discussed below under Retirees

who were working abroad or Survivors of decedents who

Deductible Moving Expenses

were working abroad.

If you meet the requirements discussed earlier under Who

United States defined. For this section of this publica-

tion, the term “United States” includes the possessions of

Can Deduct Moving Expenses, you can deduct the reason-

the United States.

able expenses of:

1) Moving your household goods and personal effects

Retirees who were working abroad. You can deduct

(including in-transit or foreign-move storage ex-

moving expenses for a move to a new home in the United

penses), and

States when you permanently retire. However, both your

former main job location and your former home must have

2) Traveling (including lodging but not meals) to your

been outside the United States.

new home.

Permanently retired. You are considered permanently

retired when you cease gainful full-time employment or

You cannot deduct any expenses for meals.

self-employment. If, at the time you retire, you intend your

retirement to be permanent, you will be considered retired

CAUTION

even though you later return to work. Your intention to

retire permanently may be determined by:

Reasonable expenses. You can deduct only those ex-

1) Your age and health,

penses that are reasonable for the circumstances of your

move. For example, the cost of traveling from your former

2) The customary retirement age for people who do

home to your new one should be by the shortest, most

similar work,

direct route available by conventional transportation. If

3) Whether you receive retirement payments from a

during your trip to your new home, you stop over, or make

pension or retirement fund, and

side trips for sightseeing, the additional expenses for your

4) The length of time before you return to full-time work.

stopover or side trips are not deductible as moving ex-

penses.

Survivors of decedents who were working abroad. If

Travel by car. If you use your car to take yourself, mem-

you are the spouse or the dependent of a person whose

bers of your household, or your personal effects to your

main job location at the time of death was outside the

new home, you can figure your expenses by deducting

United States, you can deduct moving expenses if the

either:

following five requirements are met.

1) Your actual expenses, such as gas and oil for your

1) The move is to a home in the United States.

car, if you keep an accurate record of each expense,

2) The move begins within 6 months after the

decedent’s death. (When a move begins is described

later.)

2) The standard mileage rate of 13 cents a mile.

3) The move is from the decedent’s former home.

Whether you use actual expenses or the standard mileage

rate to figure your expenses, you can deduct parking fees

4) The decedent’s former home was outside the United

and tolls you pay in moving. You cannot deduct any part

States.

of general repairs, general maintenance, insurance, or

5) The decedent’s former home was also your home.

depreciation for your car.

When a move begins. A move begins when one of the

Member of your household. You can deduct moving

following events occurs.

expenses you pay for yourself and members of your

household. A member of your household is anyone who

1) You contract for your household goods and personal

has both your former and new home as his or her home. It

effects to be moved to your home in the United

does not include a tenant or employee, unless that person

States, but only if the move is completed within a

reasonable time.

is your dependent.

Page 7

Publication 521 - Moving Expenses - 2002 Page 7

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