Business Insurance Is Tax Deductible on Schedule C Line 15
Schedule C is the tax form you fill out for your business. You put insurance for your business, like liability, property, and workers' comp insurance, on line 15. The form calls it "Insurance (other than health)." You write off what you paid for the year. Health insurance for you and your family goes on another page of your tax return.
What goes on line 15, "Insurance (other than health)"
- General liability or professional liability insurance
- Malpractice insurance
- Fire, theft, and flood insurance on your shop, tools, or stock
- Workers' comp insurance for your employees
- Business interruption insurance, which pays your lost profit if a fire or something else shuts your business down
What goes on a different line
- Health insurance for you and your family Schedule 1, another page of your tax return
- Health insurance for your employees Line 14, Employee benefit programs
- Car and truck insurance Line 9, with your other car costs
- Home or renters insurance, when you have a home office Line 30, home office
What you can't write off
- Life insurance on yourself
- Insurance that pays you if you get sick or hurt and can't work
Updated by Doug, owner of Shoeboxed. Rules from the IRS Schedule C instructions.
Costs that go on a different line
Health insurance for you and your family goes on Schedule 1
If you are self-employed, you may be able to write off what you pay for health and dental insurance for you, your spouse, and your children. It goes on Schedule 1, line 17, another page of your tax return. You can write it off even if you take the standard deduction, the flat amount most people take. It does not go on Schedule C.
Health insurance for your employees goes on line 14
Health plans you pay for your employees go on line 14, "Employee benefit programs." Your own health insurance stays off line 14 and goes on Schedule 1.
Car insurance goes with your car costs on line 9
If you add up your real car bills, like gas, repairs, and insurance, the business share of your car insurance goes on line 9. If you use the IRS rate per mile instead, the rate covers insurance. Our IRS mileage rate calculator shows what your business miles are worth.
Home or renters insurance goes with your home office on line 30
Insurance on your home is personal, except for a home office. Your tax preparer can figure a home office two ways:
- The long way, on IRS Form 8829, adds up your real home bills. If your office takes up 10% of your home, 10% of your home insurance goes on line 30.
- The simple way lets you write off $5 for each square foot of office. The $5 already includes your home insurance, so you don't add it.
See what yours is worth with our home office deduction calculator.
Life insurance on yourself is not a write-off
You can't write off life insurance on yourself when you or your family would get the money. Life insurance you buy for your employees is a write-off, as long as you are not the one who gets the money.
Insurance that replaces your own pay when you are sick or hurt is not a write-off
A policy that pays you when you can't work is personal. A policy that pays your business bills, like rent, while you are out sick or hurt is different. It goes on line 15, and the IRS calls it overhead insurance.
Where 5 common insurance bills go on Schedule C
Say you run a one-person handyman business from home. Here are five insurance bills you paid in 2026. The amounts are an example.
| The bill | Cost | Where it goes on Schedule C |
|---|---|---|
| General liability insurance | $900 | Line 15, Insurance (other than health) |
| Theft insurance on your tools | $300 | Line 15, Insurance (other than health) |
| Health insurance for you and your family | $7,200 | Schedule 1, line 17 |
| Insurance on your work van, when you add up your real van bills | $1,500 | Line 9, Car and truck expenses |
| Life insurance on yourself | $600 | Not a write-off |
Line 15 gets $1,200 for the liability and tool insurance. The health insurance goes on Schedule 1, and the van insurance goes on line 9 with your other van bills. The life insurance stays off your tax return.
Health insurance goes on Schedule 1, and life insurance on you is not a write-off
66 Shoeboxed customers had a bill from a health insurance company, like UnitedHealthcare or Blue Cross, from November 2025 to October 2026. Another 59 had a bill from a life insurance company. Health insurance for you goes on Schedule 1, line 17, and life insurance on you is not a write-off.
114 customers had a State Farm bill, more than any other insurance company. A State Farm or Progressive bill can be for a car, a home, or a business, and each goes on a different line. Type the kind of insurance, like "car insurance" or "liability insurance," in the box near the top of this page.
Shoeboxed insurance receipts, November 2025 to October 2026
3,915
insurance receipts
697
Shoeboxed customers who saved them
$455
for a typical receipt. Half cost more, and half cost less.
Shoeboxed customers with each insurance company
State Farm has the most customers. Sort its bills by what each one insures.
- State Farm 114
- All health insurance companies 66
- Progressive 62
- All life insurance companies 59
The insurance companies with the most Shoeboxed customers
| Company | Customers | Receipts | Typical receipt | Half of receipts cost between |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| State Farm | 114 | 522 | $410 | $183 and $904 |
| All health insurance companies | 66 | 221 | $298 | $120 and $1,262 |
| Progressive | 62 | 154 | $430 | $205 and $1,242 |
| All life insurance companies | 59 | 340 | $1,806 | $476 and $5,425 |
Shoeboxed counted the receipts customers uploaded from November 1, 2025, to October 31, 2026, in their "Insurance" category in Shoeboxed. We matched each company by the name on the receipt. We grouped health insurance companies, like UnitedHealthcare and Aetna. We grouped life insurance companies, like Prudential and New York Life. Some receipts showed no total, so the dollar amounts leave those out.
Keep each insurance bill and policy for 3 years after you file
The IRS wants a record of each write-off, and in most cases you keep it for 3 years after you file. For insurance, keep each bill and the page of the policy that shows what it covers.
Forward the bills that come by email to Shoeboxed, and snap the paper ones with the Shoeboxed app. Our software reads the company, the date, and the total, and we keep each one for as long as you have an account. When tax time comes, export the list or invite your bookkeeper or tax preparer in to see it.
Every Shoeboxed plan comes with a 30-day, 100% money-back guarantee. See the plans.
6 common questions about business insurance on Schedule C
Yes. Line 15, "Insurance (other than health)," is for insurance that covers your business, like liability, malpractice, property, and workers' comp insurance. You write off what you paid for the year. Health insurance for you and your family goes on Schedule 1, another page of your tax return. Life insurance on yourself is not a write-off.
Keep every receipt for your business in one place with Shoeboxed
Snap them with the app, forward the ones that come by email, or mail the paper ones to us in a Magic Envelope, and we scan them. We keep them all, ready for your accountant.
See how Shoeboxed keeps your receipts