The benefits of a gig job are obvious, with flexibility probably being the biggest one. You can work for multiple companies at the same time, and by doing so you can optimize your working hours and your income. In today’s economic situation, the interest in taking a gig job has only grown. During the pandemic, more and more people have turned to work at firms such as Uber, Lyft, or others.
Nearly a third of workers in the U.S. participate in the gig economy, meaning nearly 51,920,000 people are subjected to work directed by non-transparent algorithms with pay structures that might change at any time.
Luckily, the more workers there are, the better their accompanying apps and algorithms can be.
Tax optimization for gig workers
If workers want to utilize the single biggest return on their taxes, they can always claim their mileage. However, the apps they have to use for work to get compensated only count the miles/minutes between the starting and ending point of delivery.
Not to mention that these apps usually underestimate those miles/minutes, and because the calculations are based on an algorithm, workers cannot double-check the process.
Gig workers tend to have their own ways of tracking their business expenses. Some use spreadsheets, others keep pens and a logbook in their glove box so that they can log miles and gas costs.
They can also use a mileage tracker app to calculate the total mileage they drive per day to claim the rides between their door-to-door deliveries as those trips are also considered business trips.
Using MileageWise, an average gig driver can save up as much as $20,000
With the MileageWise Web Dashboard and Mileage Tracker App, gig workers can track their mileage with the most accuracy and they can even make up for their missing miles. With the mass distance calculation function, the built-in map will calculate the door-to-door distances between their destinations (not just from one address to another) automatically and they can even upload an Excel spreadsheet containing all of their contacts, so they don’t have to type them into the software one by one.
Wise Algorithms to the Rescue
With the help of our AI Wizard feature, users can get recommendations for a personalized mileage log, which will correspond to the exact mileage they have driven according to their odometer readings. They can even retrospectively reconstruct their miles in case their official company apps stopped recording trips for any reason at any given point in the past. In the process, the built-in IRS auditor checks and corrects 70 logical conflicts with a smart algorithm, so their mileage log will be IRS-Proof without a doubt, meeting every expectation.
This solution paired with double-checking your payslip will result in fair compensation and the desired amount of tax deduction a gig worker would like to claim on their mileage.
Didn’t set up your mobile app correctly and missed some trips?
Didn’t keep track of your mileage at all?
No worries! Let our Google Timeline import function take care of your lost trips!
For this, we strongly suggest that you turn on Location History in your Google account, which automatically tracks every one of your trips.
If anything happens in the future, you’ll have your trips in Google Timeline, which you’ll be able to convert into an IRS-approved mileage log with the help of MileageWise.
IMPORTANT: This method does not substitute using a mileage logging software such as MileageWise but gives you an extra backup in a cloud that can save you thousands of dollars when transformed into a real mileage log.
Useful links for gig workers:
- Gig Workers and Mileage: What to Log and Why
- Built-In IRS Auditor on Your Side Ensuring IRS Proof Mileage Logs
- You have 3 Years to Claim your Tax Refund on your Past Business Mileage
- Fines and Penalties for Insufficient Mileage Documentation – Explained
