Almost every business must invest in some major equipment, vehicles, machinery, or furniture in order to operate. Some businesses will require assets such as land, a building, patents, or franchise rights. Major assets that will be used in your business for more than a year are known as "capital assets" and are subject to special depreciation treatment under the tax laws.

Depreciation is claimed on Form 4562, and a separate Form 4562 must be filed for each different business activity you engage in.

Form 4562, Depreciation and Amortization

The file is in Adobe portable document format (PDF), which requires the use of Adobe Acrobat Reader.

For background information as well as information on related topics, see our discussion of Claiming Your Appreciation Deductions.