Does anyone have any idea of whether it is allowable to deduct the cost of airline points/miles purchased and subsequently used to obtain award flights which are completely for business use? This scenario pertains to self funded business travel (i.e. not reimbursed by a business or employer).
For example, I recently bought about $700 of Avianca Lifemiles, and used those in combination with about $1020 of cash co-payments to get some J PER-BKK flights for a conference I'm going to later this year. I know I can certainly claim the $1020 cash co-payment as a deduction, but what about the $700 spent on the miles solely for the purpose of getting these flights?
For example, I recently bought about $700 of Avianca Lifemiles, and used those in combination with about $1020 of cash co-payments to get some J PER-BKK flights for a conference I'm going to later this year. I know I can certainly claim the $1020 cash co-payment as a deduction, but what about the $700 spent on the miles solely for the purpose of getting these flights?