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Your employer will probably clear the cost of your client lunch appointment, but how about a designer watch? Apparently, at least one employer did bless the cost of just such a luxury timepiece ($8,000) — the purpose of the purchase was "customer appreciation," according to data from Certify, a travel and expense reporting app. The company surveyed about 2,000 individuals between 2013 and 2018. "What we tend to focus on is the uniqueness of the expense and whether the company would approve it or not from their policy," said Bob Neveu, CEO of Certify. The company released a list of its strangest business expenses, both approved — in which case, the employee receives a reimbursement that isn't counted as income — and denied over the last five years. See below for a breakdown of the weirdest work-related costs, according to Certify.

Llamas, skulls are OK

Business Expense Amount Purpose Year Status Human skull $800 For a medical experiment 2013 Approved Helicopter to work $6,500 Needed to make it to a client meeting 2017 Denied Hotel bill and flight changes $10,000 Hotel bill repair to hole punched in wall. Rebooking fee due to missed flight while in jail. 2018 Denied Llama rental $150 Photographer wanted a llama in the picture 2016 Approved Towed vehicle $150 Parked illegally due to importance of appointment 2014 Approved Separate hotel room for root vegetables $85 A separate room for garlic samples 2015 Denied Cher concert tickets $125 Expensed by employee at small company 2014 Approved Boarding for pet snake $30 per day Critical expertise needed with limited resources 2017 Approved Men's Rolex watch $8,000 Customer appreciation 2018 Approved

Whether a business can deduct a given expense depends largely on whether that cost is "ordinary and necessary" in its business. An expense that is "ordinary" is one that's common in the taxpayer's line of business. It's "necessary" if it's appropriate and helpful to the business. Be aware that if your employers reimburse an expense but the IRS denies them a deduction, then the reimbursement itself is included in your wages as income, said Lisa Greene-Lewis, a CPA with TurboTax. The employer would also have to pay unemployment taxes on that amount, too. "Those extravagant gifts may not be considered ordinary expenses, and they are no longer deductible," Greene-Lewis said.

Changes ahead