company paid housing/car in USA
Oct 19th 2012, 11:28 am
#1
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 2
company paid housing/car in USA
Hello there,
an italian company I work for is opening an office in Pittsburgh PA and I was offered to relocate there. I would appreciate your help on following matters:
- company paid housing: what's the best way to arrange it? have my company pay the rent? will I pay the fringe benefit tax? or is it better getting a $2k a month grossed up in my salary and pay the rent myself?
- company car: I'm offered a company car (i won't be using it much for business). Will I have to pay the fringe benefit tax? Is there a better way of dealing with it?
Thanks a lot for any of your help!
an italian company I work for is opening an office in Pittsburgh PA and I was offered to relocate there. I would appreciate your help on following matters:
- company paid housing: what's the best way to arrange it? have my company pay the rent? will I pay the fringe benefit tax? or is it better getting a $2k a month grossed up in my salary and pay the rent myself?
- company car: I'm offered a company car (i won't be using it much for business). Will I have to pay the fringe benefit tax? Is there a better way of dealing with it?
Thanks a lot for any of your help!
Oct 19th 2012, 1:04 pm
#2
Account Closed
Joined: Aug 2002
Location: Kentucky
Posts: 38,865
Re: company paid housing/car in USA
I'm offered a company car (i won't be using it much for business). Will I have to pay the fringe benefit tax? Is there a better way of dealing with it?
Ian
Oct 19th 2012, 1:10 pm
#3
BE Site Lead
Joined: Aug 2004
Location: MA, USA
Posts: 92,172
Re: company paid housing/car in USA
Just as long as they gross up the cost for the tax man, so you don't get slumped with a decent tax bill.
The car, either get one yourself and claim expenses against it, but if it's mostly for personal use there won't be many expenses to claim. Company could just pay for a lease though.
Biggest concern though is the medical insurance....and getting a greencard offer in writing.
The car, either get one yourself and claim expenses against it, but if it's mostly for personal use there won't be many expenses to claim. Company could just pay for a lease though.
Biggest concern though is the medical insurance....and getting a greencard offer in writing.
Oct 19th 2012, 1:53 pm
#4
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 2
Re: company paid housing/car in USA
Just as long as they gross up the cost for the tax man, so you don't get slumped with a decent tax bill.
The car, either get one yourself and claim expenses against it, but if it's mostly for personal use there won't be many expenses to claim. Company could just pay for a lease though.
Biggest concern though is the medical insurance....and getting a greencard offer in writing.
The car, either get one yourself and claim expenses against it, but if it's mostly for personal use there won't be many expenses to claim. Company could just pay for a lease though.
Biggest concern though is the medical insurance....and getting a greencard offer in writing.
Oct 19th 2012, 2:56 pm
#5
Rootbeeraholic
Joined: Aug 2009
Location: Houston, Tx
Posts: 2,280
Re: company paid housing/car in USA
Here are my thoughts:
1) Company apartment - My company has one. I stayed here for a period when I first moved over. However, in our case we had it before I came over and we still have it now - it wasn't limited to just my use and I only had it for a very short period. It's frequently used by colleagues that travel over here. If they're paying it directly and other people use it too then you should be fine. If it's just for you, you may get hit with a tax bill on it.
2) Company car - Personal mileage is taxable. If you're not using it for business use then get the company to give you a grossed up car allowance instead then your tax is covered. However, the reporting of personal mileage is not exactly rigid and it would depend on the ratio of personal mileage to business mileage. The other thing that helps is if the car is a 'pool' car with multiple people on the insurance rather than just a car for you. I have access to a pool car (the reality is that I am the one that uses it but it is a pool car) but I don't get taxed on it as it is used for business purposes. I used it exclusively when I first moved over when any personal mileage was negligible compared to the business mileage I was doing in it, but I bought my own car when I moved further out and would have had 250 miles/wk in commute on it.
1) Company apartment - My company has one. I stayed here for a period when I first moved over. However, in our case we had it before I came over and we still have it now - it wasn't limited to just my use and I only had it for a very short period. It's frequently used by colleagues that travel over here. If they're paying it directly and other people use it too then you should be fine. If it's just for you, you may get hit with a tax bill on it.
2) Company car - Personal mileage is taxable. If you're not using it for business use then get the company to give you a grossed up car allowance instead then your tax is covered. However, the reporting of personal mileage is not exactly rigid and it would depend on the ratio of personal mileage to business mileage. The other thing that helps is if the car is a 'pool' car with multiple people on the insurance rather than just a car for you. I have access to a pool car (the reality is that I am the one that uses it but it is a pool car) but I don't get taxed on it as it is used for business purposes. I used it exclusively when I first moved over when any personal mileage was negligible compared to the business mileage I was doing in it, but I bought my own car when I moved further out and would have had 250 miles/wk in commute on it.
