What this line means
The deductible portion of business meals. Business meals are generally 50% deductible — you enter the full cost on line 24b, and the 50% limit is applied during the calculation. A business meal must have a clear business purpose: a meal with a client discussing a specific project, a meal during business travel, or a meal with a business associate where business is the primary topic. Groceries and meals you eat alone at your desk are not business meals (with limited exceptions during business travel).
Does this apply to you?
- You took a client, customer, or business associate to a restaurant to discuss business
- You ate meals while traveling overnight for business
- You provided meals at a business meeting or event
- You bought food for employees during a working session
Easy to overlook
Meals during business travel are deductible even when eating alone When you travel overnight for business, your meals are deductible at 50% — including meals you eat alone. You do not need a client present. The business purpose is the travel itself. Keep your receipts and note the business reason for the trip. 1 IRS Publication 463 — Travel, Gift, and Car Expenses
The 50% limit is back to normal During 2021-2022, restaurant meals were temporarily 100% deductible. That provision expired. For 2023 and beyond, business meals are back to 50% deductible. Filers who got used to the 100% deduction during those years need to adjust their expectations and their bookkeeping. 2 General filing pattern — meal deduction percentage errors
Watch out for this
Deducting 100% of business meals instead of 50%. The temporary 100% deduction for restaurant meals expired after 2022. For tax year 2025, the standard rule applies: 50% of the cost of qualifying business meals is deductible. Enter the full amount on line 24b — the 50% limitation is applied in the tax calculation.
Footnotes
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IRS Publication 463, Travel, Gift, and Car Expenses. https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p463.pdf ↩
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IRS Schedule C (Form 1040) Instructions. See also IRS Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax. https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p17.pdf ↩