Tax deductions for adult family homes and senior care homes, in plain language.

What is in the checklist?

Questions, not tax code. Each line asks whether you paid for something — an office, a phone, a licence, a meal with a client — and tells you what counts, what only counts partly, and what to watch. Where the arithmetic is simple, the sheet does it. Where it is not, such as equipment, mileage and the home office, you enter what you paid, and the sheet tells you to ask about the specifics, because the answer depends on your circumstances.

Three tabs: the checklist itself, the things people assume count and do not, and the records to keep so that every line survives a question from a tax agency.

What do adult family homes and small senior care homes routinely miss?

• The share of the home itself. Providers who live in the home often claim none of its costs, or all of them. The right answer is in between and is worth a great deal.
• Credits that may be available. Often unclaimed simply because nobody asked.
• Training and background checks. Required, recurring and paid personally.
• Accessibility work. Claimed as a repair, or not at all, when a credit was available.

None of these is exotic. They are missed because they are paid once a year, or land on the personal return instead of the business, or feel too close to personal life to claim. The checklist asks about each one directly.