Maximize Savings: How Doctors Reimburse Expenses Through a PC

Maximize Savings: How Doctors Reimburse Expenses Through a PC

If you run your practice through a professional micro-corporation, knowing how doctors reimburse expenses through a PC is essential to maximize your tax deductions and keep more cash in your pocket. By setting up a compliant accountable plan, you can reimburse business costs—like travel, meals, continuing medical education and home office supplies—as tax-free distributions rather than taxable wages. This not only reduces your corporate taxable income but also simplifies record-keeping and audit readiness.

In this blog post, you’ll learn:

• The tax-advantaged benefits of expense reimbursement for a micro-corporation (PC)

• How to draft and adopt an accountable plan that meets IRS rules

• Eligible categories of reimbursable costs, including per diem allowances

• Best practices for substantiation, documentation and audit protection

• Common pitfalls to avoid and ways to integrate reimbursements with other strategies

Let’s walk through each step so you can transform routine outlays into strategic business deductions.

Why expense reimbursement matters for your PC

Reimbursing expenses through your professional corporation delivers multiple advantages:

1. Tax-free treatment

   • Under an accountable plan, reimbursed amounts are not reported as wages on your W-2

   • You avoid payroll taxes on those payments, saving up to 15.3% in Social Security and Medicare contributions

2. Business deduction

   • Your PC deducts the reimbursements as ordinary and necessary business expenses

   • This lowers the corporation’s taxable profit and your overall tax liability

3. Cash-flow management

   • You get cash up front to cover business costs without dipping into personal funds

   • Routine expenses become predictable line items instead of variable salary outlays

4. Audit preparedness

   • A written reimbursement policy and organized receipts reduce IRS scrutiny

   • Proper substantiation prevents expenses from being recharacterized as taxable wages

If you’ve read about other strategies—such as how to keep more income with accountable plan or deductible expenses for doctors with corporations—you know that reimbursements belong in your tax-planning toolbox. Now let’s build your policy from the ground up.

Set up an accountable plan

An accountable plan is a written policy that specifies which expenses are eligible, how and when you’ll report costs, and what documentation is required. Follow these steps to adopt one in your PC:

1. Draft a written policy

Key components:

• Eligible expense categories (travel, meals, CME, home office supplies, mileage)

• Time frame for submissions (typically 60 days after expense)

• Method of reimbursement (per diem allowances vs actual costs)

• Return of excess advances (within 120 days)

2. Obtain board or shareholder approval

• Pass a corporate resolution to adopt the plan

• Record the effective date to tie reimbursements to the policy

3. Communicate the plan to employees

• Distribute policy documents to all covered parties (you, spouse, staff)

• Require signed acknowledgements to confirm understanding

4. Integrate with payroll system

• Set up reimbursement payments as separate transactions, not regular payroll runs

• Use your payroll or accounting software to track submissions, approvals and disbursements

5. Review and update annually

• Adjust per diem rates to reflect IRS guidelines or cost-of-living changes

• Add or remove eligible expense categories based on your practice needs

By codifying your reimbursement rules, you ensure that all expense claims are treated consistently. This formal structure qualifies payments as non-wage distributions, preserving their tax-free status.

Eligible expenses to reimburse

An accountable plan can cover any business-related outlay that meets the IRS criteria of “ordinary and necessary.” Common categories for clinicians include:

Travel and transportation

• Airfare, train and bus tickets for conferences or consulting

• Mileage for patient visits or home health calls (track using an odometer log)

• Parking, tolls and ride-share services

• Ground transportation at destination (rental cars, taxis, shuttles)

Meals and entertainment

• Meals while traveling on business (subject to 50% deduction rules for entertainment)

• Business-related client or referral partner meals

• Team lunches or dinners tied to practice strategy sessions

Continuing medical education (CME)

• Registration fees for conferences, seminars and workshops

• Books, courses and online modules required by your specialty

• Travel and lodging for CME events

Home office and supplies

• Pro rata portion of rent, utilities and internet for a dedicated home office

• Office supplies, postage and minor equipment (printers, scanners)

• Software subscriptions (EMR, billing, telemedicine platforms)

Professional fees and dues

• State licensing, board certification and specialty society memberships

• Malpractice insurance premiums (if paid personally, to be reimbursed)

Other business costs

• Marketing, website hosting and advertising

• Lab fees, medical equipment maintenance and repairs

• Staff training, consulting and outsourced services

Be mindful that personal or commuting costs are not reimbursable. Whenever in doubt, link the expense to a specific business purpose and note that purpose on your expense claim form.

Implement per diem allowances

Per diem rates simplify reimbursements by covering lodging, meals and incidental expenses under fixed daily amounts. Instead of collecting every receipt, you pay a standard rate set by the IRS (or your custom schedule).

Federal per diem guidelines

• Conformed to GSA rates for U.S. cities (updated yearly at gsa.gov)

• Two components: lodging and meals/incidental expenses (M&IE)

• Example (2025 continental US): $158 lodging, $69 M&IE

Custom per diem approach

• Set rates aligned with actual cost patterns in your region

• Use tiers for high-cost locations versus standard areas

• Document rate schedules in your accountable plan

Table: sample per diem vs actual reimbursement

Per diem reduces admin burden and speeds payments, but careful rate selection is crucial. If you reimburse above federal limits without receipts, the excess becomes taxable.

Maintain compliance and audit readiness

Proper substantiation transforms expense claims into tax-free reimbursements. Without it, your PC risks reclassifying payments as taxable wages.

IRS rules and documentation

To qualify as an accountable plan, each claim must include:

• Amount, date and description of expense

• Business purpose (meeting name, patient event, consulting engagement)

• Location of travel or expense occurrence

• Original receipts for amounts over $75 (keep electronic backups)

Record-keeping best practices

• Scan receipts and store them in a centralized document management system

• Use mileage logs (paper or app-based) with trip details and odometer readings

• Archive expense reports, reimbursement checks and bank statements for at least 3 years

Common pitfalls and troubleshooting

Even with a solid plan, mistakes can creep in. Watch for these traps:

Late or missing receipts

• Submissions after the 60-day window risk being classified as nonaccountable

• Solution: Set firm deadlines and use digital receipt capture to avoid lost paper

Reimbursing personal expenses

• Mixing personal and business costs undermines the plan

• Solution: Require a clear business purpose and flag any questionable items

Excess advances

• Advances exceeding actual costs must be returned within 120 days

• Solution: Track advance balances and reconcile at month end

Unreasonable reimbursements

• Paying above fair-market rates invites IRS scrutiny

• Solution: Benchmark rates against federal per diem, local costs or industry surveys

Treating reimbursements as payroll

• Issuing reimbursements through regular payroll triggers income and payroll taxes

• Solution: Use separate reimbursement runs or accounting codes

By anticipating these issues and adopting practical fixes, you’ll keep reimbursements on solid ground.

Integrate reimbursements with other strategies

Expense management doesn’t exist in isolation. Pair reimbursements with complementary tactics:

Coordinate with retirement contributions

• Free up salary dollars for Solo 401(k) or SEP-IRA deferrals

• Lower W-2 wages allow you to funnel more into retirement plans

Leverage deductible spending guides

• See our deep dive on deductible expenses for doctors with corporations

• Identify niche write-offs like telemedicine equipment, lab supplies and patient gifts

Explore legal tax minimization

• Combine reimbursements with income-shifting tactics—such as family employment

• Learn more about how physicians can pay less in taxes legally

Audit-proof with professional help

• Consult a CPA familiar with PC taxation and accountable plans

• Request a policy template or checklist to streamline implementation

By weaving reimbursements into a broader tax-optimization framework, you maximize savings and bolster compliance.

Next steps and resources

1. Finalize your accountable plan policy

   • Draft expense categories, per diem schedules and substantiation rules

2. Present the policy to your board or shareholders

   • Secure formal adoption with a corporate resolution

3. Implement tracking tools

   • Deploy receipt-capture apps, mileage logs and a centralized filing system

4. Train staff and family employees

   • Ensure everyone understands submission deadlines and documentation requirements

5. Review results quarterly

   • Analyze reimbursement trends, identify new eligible costs and adjust rates as needed

For additional tools and templates:

• Download our Tax Deduction Guide For Micro-Business Owners

• Enroll in our webinar on Strategic Tax Planning for PCs

• Book a consultation to tailor your plan and optimize your corporate deductions

With a robust accountable plan in place, you’ll convert everyday expenses into tax-free distributions, strengthen your audit defense and reclaim cash flow for practice growth. Take action today to put reimbursements to work as a strategic business deduction for your PC.