Beyond the obvious deductions like rent, supplies, and staff pay, there are a handful of deductions practice owners commonly leave on the table simply because the recordkeeping requirements aren't as intuitive as they seem.

Continuing education is one of the most consistently underused. CE course fees, travel to attend a seminar or conference, lodging, and a portion of meals connected to required continuing education are generally deductible business expenses, but only if they're tracked and documented properly, meaning receipts kept and the business purpose clearly noted, not reconstructed from memory months later at tax time.

Mileage is another area where the rules are more specific than most owners expect. Driving between your practice and a second location, a hospital for referrals, or a CE event is generally deductible business mileage. A normal commute from home to your primary practice location generally isn't. The distinction matters, and it requires an actual mileage log, whether that's an app tracking trips automatically or a maintained written log, to support the deduction if it's ever questioned.

Home office deductions apply for owners who handle a genuine, regular portion of practice administration from a dedicated space at home, though the space needs to be used regularly and exclusively for that purpose to qualify, not a kitchen table that occasionally hosts paperwork. This deduction gets both underused by owners who don't realize they qualify and misused by owners claiming a space that doesn't actually meet the requirement, so it's worth getting an accurate read on your specific situation rather than guessing in either direction.

Professional memberships, journal subscriptions, and licensing fees tied directly to maintaining your credentials are also generally deductible and worth tracking cleanly rather than lumping into a general expense category where they're easy to lose track of.

None of these deductions are complicated once a consistent tracking habit is in place. They just require setting up the right categories and documentation from the start rather than trying to reconstruct a year's worth of receipts and mileage from memory when tax time arrives.

Jeremy Brewer is the founder of 911 Bookkeepers LLC in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. 911 Bookkeepers partners with MBJA Accounting Service to give chiropractic and MDVIP practices clean, current financials. He is a Xero Certified Advisor.