Customers are an essential part of any business which is why it’s extremely important to take good care of them and assure the highest level of customer satisfaction possible. In order to do this, many companies rely on customer service representatives to handle their interactions with customers. If you are employed as a customer service representative, your employee will supply you with a Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, at tax time.

This form will list your earnings and tax withholdings. As a CSR, you’re able to reduce your tax liability by deducting any expenses you incurred that were not reimbursed by your employer. Like all deductions you claim, you’ll need receipts to serve as proof of the expenses. You may be able to deduct:

• Subscription costs to publications and journals that relate to your job
• Union dues and professional membership costs
• State or local government regulatory fees, licenses, or flat rate occupational taxes, as long as they aren’t paid for initial certification

You also may qualify for education costs you incurred if related to your job. These courses have to meet specific requirements in order to be deductible. Generally, refresher courses, vocational courses, and courses that teach current developments are usually deductible. If you take classes that qualify you for a new occupation or allow you to meet minimum qualifications for your new job, you will not be able to deduct these courses.