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Dr. Fernando Ovalle is a Florida-based, board-certified plastic surgeon.

Like many high-earning 1099 business owners, there came a point where doing it all himself was no longer worth the stress (and potential overpayment). Taxes had gotten more complex, and it was taking attention away from the work that mattered most.

Dr. Ovalle, thank you for trusting us with your business. Our goal is simple: help make taxes feel lighter, so you can stay focused on your craft and your patients.

We have clients who are high earning self employed barbers, manicurists, nail technicians or hairdressers.

Most self-employed people don’t realize that it’s almost always forbidden to write off your nails, haircut, skincare or clothes.

They ask, “but it’s essentially required in my job”.

There’s the famous military haircut case from 1969 called Drake v Commissioner. At the time employees could deduct ordinary and necessary expenses that were not covered by the employer, enlisted soldiers had to get a haircut every 2 weeks. Drake wanted to deduct haircut costs for the year, and it was disallowed in court, claiming it was inherently personal grooming and the requirement of the job was not a valid test

The rule of thumb is that if it can benefit you outside of work in any way, then it’s not allowed

With the General Corporate Tax for S-Corps and the UBT tax for regular LLCs, NYC makes it particularly difficult to pay less taxes on your business income.

There are certainly things that can be done, and many of the regular, traditional strategies (such as pre-tax contributions, HSAs, etc.) still apply but you are generally more constrained than in other places.

Note: This is general educational content and not tax, financial, or legal advice. Please consult with your accountant for your specific situation.