How do taxes work for Lyft drivers?

Uber drivers and Lyft drivers are not considered “employees” by the IRS. Instead, they're classified as independent contractors, meaning the rideshare services don't withhold taxes from their payments. Independent contractors also receive a 1099 at year-end rather than a W-2.



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You can deduct expenses related to the use of your car, such as gas, oil changes, repairs, and insurance. If you use your car for both personal and business purposes, you can only deduct the portion of expenses that relates to business use.

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If an expense also benefits you personally, only the portion attributed to your business is deductible. For example, you may have a cell phone that you use for driving about 25 percent of the time. In that case, you can deduct 25 percent of the phone bill as a tax deduction.

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Since rideshare drivers are self-employed, most will need to make quarterly estimated payments to stay compliant. You may owe over $1,000 in taxes even if you earn less than $600 from Uber after accounting for self-employment taxes and income taxes.

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Whether you use ridesharing services, like Uber or Lyft, or take the bus or train from your house to the office, your commuting miles won't be considered tax-deductible by the IRS. On the other hand, “work-related travel” or business miles can be written off.

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Either Lyft will charge you and the bank will pay the bill and overdraw your account (huge fee-probably alot more than your ride) or it will deny the charge and you won't be able to get a ride again until you pay your bill.

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