Crafts Inventory and Taxes

Dear Rich: I have been making crafts for gifts for many years. Over the years I have accumulated much inventory, including several sewing machines, yards of various fabrics and ribbons, etc. I have recently decided to start a business selling on etsy.com. When doing my taxes, how do I claim the existing inventory accumulated over the last 20 years, much of what I will use in my new business? WARNING! Entry may cause drowsiness. Do not read while driving.
Right, you had a question. Short answer: You probably can't count your 20 years of supplies as inventory unless you have incorporated those materials in finished (and unsold) works or works in progress.
The Basic Inventory Rules.  Inventory includes completed but unsold crafts work, raw materials used to create the crafts work, crafts works in process and certain supplies that become part of your crafts work. In other words it's all the stuff you've created that's unsold as well as all of the direct costs to make that stuff. The IRS wants you to calculate your inventory value (or "cost of goods") at the beginning and ending of each tax year. These costs include:

• the money spent on materials that become an integral part of the finished product, or materials consumed in the manufacturing process and are identified with the crafts goods
• the money spent on labor associated with each crafts items -- payments for employees, contractors, payroll taxes, etc.
• indirect costs necessary for production of each item other than direct production costs. (You may not have any of these unless you can calculate things like variable and fixed overhead expenses).

If you don't know how to calculate the direct costs of materials and labor for your goods, there's an explanation in our book for crafts artists as well as the explanation in this IRS circular.
Can you deduct 20-year old ribbon and fabrics? Although we talked about raw materials as part of the inventory, the IRS position seems to be that only finished (or partly finished) merchandise should be included in inventory. According to Code of Federal Reg. 1.471.1, raw materials and supplies should only be included in inventory to the extent that the goods have been acquired for sale or will physically be part of the merchandise intended for sale. So, unless your past purchases are incorporated in finished works or works in progress, they should not be counted as inventory. 

What about sewing machines and other equipment? Sewing machines and other equipment used in production are considered to be long-term assets (assets with a useful life of more than one year). They can be deducted in one year under Section 179, or they can be depreciated.

When tax time arrives ... you may want to consult a tax expert, at least for the first year you calculate inventory. Your beginning inventory for subsequent years will be your ending inventory for the previous year.

How Do I Deduct Crafts Inventory on My Taxes?

Dear Rich: Last year we started selling handmade jewelry at places like Etsy. We had a good year but we ran into few problems at tax time and filed for an extension. We got your book but we're confused about how to calculate inventory. It's not that bad doing the calculations if you use a tax software program (we've used TurboTax Home and Business). But even if you use software, you'll still need to know your cost of goods (COGS) for the year. The IRS explains how to figure it out on its website by walking you through lines 35 through 42 of Schedule C. Here's a summary:

• Line 35: Beginning of year inventory. If this is your first year of operations, beginning inventory would be zero. If it's not your first year, this amount should be identical to the prior year's closing inventory. (If it isn't, you must explain why to the IRS.) Include the total cost of raw materials, work in process, finished goods, and materials and supplies used in manufacturing the crafts, but only those that were part of inventory at the beginning of the year. The IRS provides an explanation on valuing inventories (scroll down to "Inventories"). 
• Line 36: What did you purchase this year? Here you provide the cost of all merchandise you purchased during the year. Include the costs of all materials you purchased in the year that were necessary to manufacture your crafts. Subtract the cost of any items withdrawn for personal use.
• Line 37: Labor costs. Calculate labor costs — the amounts paid to employees for making your crafts. Do not include any amounts paid to yourself. (If you have employees that are not involved in manufacturing items for sale, their labor costs will be deducted elsewhere on the tax return and are not included in the cost of goods sold.)
• Line 38: Other manufacturing supplies. If you need glues, chemicals or other crafts supplies to manufacture your goods for sale, list the amount paid for these supplies.
• Line 39: Packaging costs. If you manufacture goods for sale, you can list additional costs such as containers and packages that are part of the manufactured product, costs of freight to bring in supplies, and overhead expenses — for example, rent, heat, light, power, insurance, depreciation, taxes, and maintenance — that are direct and necessary manufacturing expenses.
• Line 40: Total lines 35 through 39. This represents the total cost of inventory that your business held in the year.
• Line 41: End of year inventory. On Line 41, you enter the value of the inventory unsold at the end of the year. Keep in mind that the value of the remaining inventory is not the price you plan to sell it for; it is the amount you paid for it. This amount will become your beginning inventory for the next year — that is the number you will use on Line 35 of the following year's tax return. Note that most businesses do a "physical" inventory at the end of the year; that is, actually count and record the type and number of each remaining inventory item. The results of this work will provide the basis for the year-end inventory calculation. Physical inventories also allow you to inspect and discard inventory if it is damaged or of no value, thereby "writing it off" of year-end inventory and increasing the costs of your 'goods sold' deduction. A physical count also will alert you to items missing from your inventory.
• Line 42: COGS deduction. On Line 42, you subtract the amount listed on line 41 (ending inventory) from line 40 (all inventory costs). The result is the amount you claim as your COGS deduction.

For more information on inventories, see the Cost of Goods Sold section in Chapter 7 of IRS Publication 334, Tax Guide for Small Businesses, and IRS Publication 538, Accounting Periods and Methods.
By the way ... Some cities also have a tax on business inventory. This is another reason why some retail businesses have inventory sales -- to reduce their stock before the tax date.