The other factor is the time element. Was the asignment temporary that kept getting extended or was it indefinite from the beginning? The 1 year and over rule is for single location for an indefinite period of time. In this case, travel related expenses are not deductible. However, the other business expenses are deductible. This would still help you somewhat. It all depends on the time nature of the assignment.

I have not looked up the Court cases and the only Rev. Rul. is 93-86. Code Sec. 162(a).

Doh. I just came across that text also.

I started on the project in late March 1998, with an expected completion date of January 1999. In mid-January - it was determined that I needed to stay through early April, just over the one year mark. Thus all the expenses from mid-January to early April fell into the taxable range.

The majority of those expenses were lodging, airfare, and car rental, only a small % was meals.

Looks like I'm back to square one - and need to figure out how to pry the $$ from their checkbook to cover the difference in liabability due to the change in tax brackets.

Apparently still looking for answers - BillyBF