Passenger transportation
Books and taxes for limousine and black car companies.
Wedding deposits, corporate account invoices, airport transfers, and the tips that ride along with the fare. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
June came in at $14,400. Three wedding deposits landed this month for August dates, so I held them against the wedding, not June's work.
- moovs payoutTrip fares
- Chen wedding depositEvent deposits
- Riverside Corporate acctCorporate accounts
- Sedan detailing, SparkleVehicle upkeep
- Chauffeur payrollDriver wages
Why your books are different
A limo and black car company's books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees deposits and payroll. Your business is chauffeurs, wedding dates booked months out, corporate accounts that pay on their own schedule, and tips riding along with every card swipe. When the books do not know that, the monthly number lies to you.
-
1
Wedding deposits land in the wrong month
A couple books a limousine in January for a September wedding and pays half down that day. Counted as January income, it makes a slow month look busy and September, the month the work actually happens, look thin by comparison.
What we doHolds the deposit against the date of the wedding itself, so the month the car actually runs is the month that gets credit for the income. -
2
Corporate accounts pay 30 to 60 days out
A corporate client rides all month on an account and the invoice does not get paid until well after the trips happened, so cash in the bank can lag far behind the work already done.
What we doTracks what corporate accounts have been billed against what has actually been paid, so you know what is still outstanding. -
3
Gratuities get counted as part of the fare
A tip that rides along on the same card swipe as the trip fare is easy to record as one lump sum, which overstates what the ride itself earned and can muddy what a chauffeur is actually owed.
What we doKeeps gratuities in their own line, separate from the fare, so trip income and driver tips never blur together. -
4
A chauffeur paid per run looks like a contractor
A driver who runs your dispatched jobs, drives your car, and wears your uniform is usually an employee even if paid by the run instead of by the hour. Treated as a contractor out of habit, it can turn into a costly correction later.
What we doFlags drivers who work like employees regardless of how the pay is structured, and brings the accountant in before it becomes a pattern. -
5
A new sedan or Sprinter van hits the books as one big bill
Replacing an aging Town Car with a new sedan or a Mercedes Sprinter is a large purchase that can get buried in the same category as fuel or repairs, missing the depreciation the return should catch.
What we doLogs vehicle purchases as equipment the month they show up and gets the accountant's call on how they get written off.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a limo or black car company.
Set up once for how you get booked and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Trip faresAirport runs, nights out, and point-to-point rides booked through moovs or Limo Anywhere.
- Event depositsWeddings, proms, and galas booked months ahead, held against the event date.
- Corporate accountsBusinesses that ride on account and get billed monthly.
- Hourly chartersNights and afternoons booked by the hour instead of the trip.
- GratuitiesTips riding along with card payments, kept apart from the fare.
Money out
- Chauffeur wagesPayroll for drivers, kept apart from anything paid to a subcontracted driver.
- Vehicle upkeepDetailing, tires, oil changes, and repairs for the fleet.
- FuelGas for sedans and SUVs, diesel for larger vehicles.
- Vehicle loans and leasesMonthly payments on sedans, Sprinters, and stretch limousines.
- Commercial and livery insuranceCoverage required to carry passengers for hire.
- Dispatch and booking softwaremoovs, Limo Anywhere, or similar reservation systems.
- Licensing and permitsLivery, TLC, or PUC permits and vehicle inspections.
- MarketingWedding expos, referral fees, and local advertising.
What we watch for you
- Cost per trip
Fuel, detailing, and driver pay against fares, so you know which runs pay.
- Corporate receivables
What accounts owe and how long it has sat unpaid, before it becomes a problem.
- Driver labor share
Wages against money in, so pricing keeps up with what chauffeurs cost.
- The set-aside
What you will owe on wedding and corporate income both, tracked every month.
Ask Gus
Things limo and black car owners ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
I hold it against September, the month the car actually runs. January still looks like the month it really was.
I logged it as equipment, not a repair or supplies. Whether it comes off all at once or over a few years is the accountant's call with your whole year in view.
If he drives your car on your schedule, he usually looks like an employee to the IRS, whatever the pay is called. I flagged it so the accountant can walk you through it.
The tax side
The tax side of a limo or black car business.
Most of what goes wrong here is timing and labels. A deposit counted too early, a chauffeur paid like a contractor, and a vehicle filed as an expense instead of equipment.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Vehicles and depreciationA sedan, Sprinter van, or stretch limousine bought for the business can usually be depreciated, and bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for vehicles acquired after January 19, 2025.
- Chauffeur classificationA driver who runs your dispatched jobs and drives your vehicle is usually an employee, not a contractor, regardless of whether pay is by the run or the hour.
- Contractor 1099sA subcontracted driver or car service you send overflow work to, if not on payroll and paid $2,000 or more in 2026, gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.
Deductions limousine and black car companies miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Vehicle detailing
- Chauffeur uniforms
- Fuel and tolls
- Livery insurance
- Booking software fees
- TLC and PUC permits
- Wedding expo booth fees
- Card processing fees
- Vehicle inspections
- Radios and GPS units
- Airport permit fees
- Background check fees
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A limo and black car year, kept every month.
Wedding season books up in spring, corporate travel runs all year, and your team stays on the books through every bit of it. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Set up before proposals
Last year's return gets started, the 1099 list for any subcontracted drivers is ready, and a monthly set-aside gets planned before wedding deposits start rolling in.
- April
Filed before the rush
Your return is filed and signed while spring bookings are already picking up, with no scramble because the set-aside has been running since January.
- July
Wedding season tally
A look at what wedding season actually brought in, what you will owe, and whether pricing kept pace with driver costs.
- October
Before the holiday rush
Corporate holiday party season is coming. Gus looks at any vehicle you might add and anything worth doing before December.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for limousine and black car companies. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions limo and black car owners ask first.
How does Gus handle a wedding deposit paid months before the event?
He holds it against the date the wedding actually happens, not the day the deposit landed, so neither month gets credit for work that did not happen in it.
I book most of my work through moovs. Do I need to change how I use it?
No. Book the way you always have. Gus reads your bank statement and matches deposits to trips, and if one is unclear he asks you once and remembers your answer after that.
Do gratuities count as my income?
The tip itself is usually the driver's, and Gus keeps it in its own line so it never gets confused with what the ride actually earned.
My drivers are paid per run, not hourly. Does that keep them out of payroll?
Not on its own. What matters is whether they drive your car on your schedule. Gus flags drivers who look like employees and the accountant sorts out what it means for you.
Can Gus keep corporate accounts straight from my per-trip work?
Yes. He tracks what each account has been billed against what has been paid, so you always know what is still outstanding.
My books are behind by a few months. Is that a problem?
No. Hand over whatever statements you have, even a stack of unopened months. Gus works through them and tells you where the business actually stands, usually within a week.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
More in passenger transportation
We keep books for the business next door too.
- Airport shuttle services
- Charter bus companies
- Pedicab companies
- Private jet charter brokers
- School bus contractors
- Senior & wheelchair transportation
- Water taxis & ferries
- Wine tour & brewery tour shuttles
- Non-emergency medical transport (NEMT)
- Box truck businesses
- Car haulers
- Cold storage warehouses
- Customs brokers
- Expedited freight (sprinter vans)
- Final-mile delivery companies
- Freight forwarders
- Furniture delivery & white glove delivery
- Heavy haul & oversize transport
- Hot shot trucking
- Livestock haulers
- Local courier services
- Medical courier services
- Aerial applicators & crop dusters
- Aircraft detailing
- Aircraft maintenance shops (MRO)
- Aircraft sales brokers
- Boat detailing & bottom cleaning
- Boat repair & marine mechanics
- Boat shrink wrapping services
- Boat transport companies
What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever