Rev. Rul. 71-247

Advice has been requested as to the deductibility, for Federal income tax purposes, of traveling expenses, including costs of meals and lodging, incurred by a taxpayer who, because of the nature of his employment, changes his work locations frequently and has no principal or regular place of employment.

The taxpayer is a member of a work crew responsible for the construction and maintenance of certain public utility facilities located in a twelve-state region. He receives his assignments and reassignment to various work locations from the regional office of his employer, but he does not travel to or from that office, nor does he live in the vicinity of the office. His work locations are only temporary and change frequently, and he has no way of knowing where future work assignments will be located. The taxpayer owns a house in City A where he lives when not away on work assignments, and where his wife and children reside at all times. City A is located in the twelve-state region where the taxpayer's work assignments occur. All of the work assignments require the taxpayer to be away from his abode at least long enough to necessitate his stopping for substantial sleep or rest.

Under section 162(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, a taxpayer may deduct traveling expenses (including amounts expended for meals and lodging other than amounts which are lavish or extravagant under the circumstances) while away from home in the pursuit of a trade or business. On the other hand, section 262 of the Code specifies that, with certain exceptions not relevant here, no deduction shall be allowed for personal, living, or family expenses. The principal question in the present case is whether the taxpayer has a "home" within the meaning of section 162(a)(2) of the Code. Only if he does, can he deduct expenses under this section as expenses of traveling "away from home."

Generally, a taxpayer's "home" for purposes of the statute is considered to be located at his principal or regular place of business or employment, regardless of where he maintains his place of abode. See Rev. Rul. 60-189, C.B. 1960-1, 60. However, all the facts and circumstances of a particular situation must be considered in determining the location of a taxpayer's "home," and the fact that a taxpayer's trade or business is of such nature that he has no principal place of employment, does not necessarily mean that he has no "home" for purposes of the statute.

Under the facts of the present case, it is held that City A, where the taxpayer's house is located, is his home for purposes of section 162(a)(2) of the Code, and his traveling expenses on trips away from that city which are of such duration as to require that he stop for substantial sleep or rest, if otherwise allowed under section 162, are deductible from gross income in computing his adjusted gross income as provided in section 62 of the Code.