Work-related daily travel expenses you cannot claim

Generally, the cost of normal trips between your home and work is a private expense you cannot claim a deduction for, even if:

• you do minor tasks on the way to work or home, such as picking up the mail
• you have to travel between your home and work more than once a day – for example, you drive home at the end of the school day and then return to work to attend a school speech night in the evening – see example 6
• you are on call – for example, you are on stand-by relief teaching and your employer contacts you at home to come into work – see example 7 following
• you work outside normal business hours – for example, you are
  • conducting parent-teacher interviews after work hours
  • at school during the school holidays preparing for the next term 

Motor vehicle provided by your employer or any other person

You cannot claim a deduction for car expenses if your employer or any other person provides a car for you and you do not pay for any of the running costs.

You cannot claim a deduction for any expenses you incur for the direct operation of a car that your employer provides and that you or your relatives use privately at any time, even if the expenses are work related – such expenses form part of the valuation of the car for fringe benefits tax purposes.

You cannot claim a deduction for the cost of travelling to another workplace for a social function.

You cannot claim a deduction for any fines you receive, such as speeding or parking infringements.

Claiming car expenses

If the motor vehicle you drive is a car, and you are entitled to claim a deduction for your work-related car expenses, there are two methods you can choose from to work out the amount you can claim.

The two methods are:

• cents per kilometre
• logbook.

You can claim a deduction for the decline in value (depreciation) of your car up to the value of the car limit if you use the logbook method.

Cents per kilometre method

You can use this method to claim up to a maximum of 5,000 work kilometres, even if you have travelled more than 5,000 work kilometres. For example, if you have travelled 5,085 work kilometres, you cannot claim for the extra 85 kilometres.

When working out your deduction using the cents per kilometre method, you do not need receipts or other written evidence, but we may ask you how you worked out your estimate of work kilometres. For example, by:

• using a diary of work-related travel
• basing your costs on a regular pattern of travel.

You can claim a deduction for the cost of running home office

If you perform some of your work from your home office, you may be able to claim a deduction for the costs you incur in running your home office, even if the room is not set aside solely for work-related purposes.

You may be able to claim:

• the decline in value (depreciation) of home office equipment such as computers and telecommunications equipment – if your equipment costs less than $300, you can claim a full deduction for the work-related portion
• work-related phone calls, including from mobiles for calls to students regularly while you are away from your workplace – for example, you call parents of your students to discuss behavioural issues
• work-related internet access charges
• the cost of heating, cooling and lighting your home office that is over the amount you would ordinarily have to pay if you did not work from home
• the costs of repairs to your home office furniture and fittings.

A depreciating asset, such as a computer, is an asset that has a limited effective life and can reasonably be expected to decline in value over the time you use it.

If you purchase an item that cost more than $300, you can only claim a deduction for its decline in value.

You can only claim occupancy expenses where your home office is considered to be a place of business. Occupancy expenses include rent or mortgage interest, council rates and house insurance premiums.. If your only income is paid to you as an employee, you are generally not able to claim a deduction for your occupancy expenses.

Keeping records of your home office running expenses

The records you must keep may include:

• receipts or other written evidence of your expenses, including receipts for depreciating assets you have purchased – for example, your computer
• diary entries you make to record your small expenses ($10 or less) totalling no more than $200, or expenses you cannot obtain any kind of evidence for, regardless of the amount – for example, stationery
• itemised phone accounts you can identify work-related calls on – see example 15. If you don’t receive itemised accounts, you can make a reasonable estimate of your call costs based on diary records you have kept over a four-week period, together with your relevant telephone accounts.
• a diary you have created to work out how much you used your equipment, home office and phone for work-related purposes over a representative four-week period.

Working out your claim

To claim a deduction for the electricity and gas you use and the decline in value of your office furniture, you can claim either of the following:

• a deduction for your actual expenses
• a deduction you work out at a rate of 45 cents per hour.

To use the 45 cents per hour method of claiming, keep a diary to record the amount of time you use your home office for work purposes. The diary must show a representative period of at least four weeks to establish a pattern of use for the whole year.

If you receive a laptop at no cost through a government initiative, you cannot claim a deduction for the cost of the laptop because you have not incurred the expense.

You can claim a deduction for the cost of buying, hiring, repairing and cleaning certain work-related uniforms or protective clothing.

• A compulsory uniform is a set of clothing that, worn together, identifies you as an employee of an organization
• a single item of distinctive clothing, such as a jumper or tie, if it is compulsory for you to wear it at work.
• Non-compulsory uniforms or corporate wardrobe – If your employer requires or encourages you to wear a distinctive uniform or corporate wardrobe but does not consistently enforce the wearing of it, you can claim a deduction for the cost of the clothing only if the design of the clothing is registered.
• Protective clothing – You can claim a deduction for the cost of buying, hiring, replacing or maintaining protective clothing. Protective clothing is clothing that you wear to protect yourself from the risk of illness or injury posed by your income-earning activities or the environment in which you are required to carry them out

You cannot claim a deduction for the cost of purchasing or cleaning a plain uniform or conventional clothing worn at work, even if your employer tells you to wear them, because it is a private expense. This includes expenditure on:

• sports clothes – for example, tracksuits, T-shirts, aerobics clothing, swimming costumes, shorts, socks and running or aerobic shoes – even if you are a physical education teacher
• clothing that you have to wear for medical reasons – for example, support stockings
• conventional clothing that is damaged at work
• everyday footwear – for example, dress, casual or running shoes.

You can claim a deduction for the cost of laundering and dry-cleaning work (compulsory uniforms, single items of compulsory clothing, non-compulsory uniforms or corporate wardrobe, and protective clothing). For example, you can claim a deduction for cleaning a uniform that your employer provides and that you must wear at work.

You can claim laundry expenses for washing, drying or ironing such work clothes, including laundromat expenses. If your claim for laundry expenses is $150 or less, you do not need written evidence – you may use a reasonable basis to work out your claim.

If you claim a deduction for laundry expenses that is more than $150, and your total claim for work-related expenses (other than car, meal allowance, award transport allowance and travel allowance expenses) exceeds $300, you need written evidence for the total claim. You can claim the cost of dry-cleaning work clothes if you have kept written evidence to substantiate your claim. You do not need written evidence if your total claim for work-related expenses is $300 or less.

You may be able to claim a deduction if you have any self-education expenses relating to your work as an employee.

Self-education expenses are expenses related to a prescribed course of education provided by a school, college, university or other place of education. The course must be undertaken to gain a formal qualification for use in carrying on a profession, business or trade or in the course of employment. You can claim a deduction for the cost of self-education if there is a direct connection between your self-education and your work activities at the time the expense was incurred.

Self-education expenses are not deductible if your study is designed to get you:

• a job
• a new job
• income from a new income-earning activity.

For example, if you have a Diploma of Education and you are studying for a Bachelor of Education degree, you can claim a deduction for the education expenses you incur. The degree is likely to lead to an increase in your income from teaching.

Self-education expenses can include textbooks, stationery, student union fees, course fees, certain travel expenses and the decline in value of equipment, to the extent they are used for self-education purposes 

In certain circumstances you may have to reduce your deduction for self-education expenses by $250. However, you may have other types of expenses (some of which are not deductible) that can be offset against the $250 before you have to reduce the amount you can claim.

You can claim a deduction, called a capital allowance, for the decline in value of equipment used for work. If the equipment is also used for private purposes, you cannot claim a deduction for that part of the decline in value.

You cannot claim a deduction if the equipment is supplied by your employer or any other person.

Generally, the amount of your deduction depends on the effective life of the equipment.

Equipment costing $300 or less

If you purchased equipment costing $300 or less and you use it mainly for work, you can claim an immediate deduction for the work-related portion of the cost.

You cannot claim an immediate deduction if:

• the equipment is part of a set that you buy in the same income year and the total cost of the set is more than $300 (the set rule), or
• the equipment is one of a number of identical or substantially identical items you buy in an income year and the total cost of the items is more than $300 (the multiples rule).

Low-value pool

There is also an option to pool equipment costing less than $1,000 and equipment written down to less than $1,000 under the diminishing value method. A deduction for the decline in value of equipment in such a low-value pool is worked out by a single calculation using set rates.

Equipment for which you may be able to claim a capital allowance includes:

• calculators and electronic organisers
• computers and computer software
• answering machines, telephones, facsimile machines, mobile phones, pagers and other telecommunications equipment
• a professional library
• dedicated stopwatches (but not ordinary wristwatches).

You can claim a deduction for the costs you incur when you take students on excursions, educational and sporting trips and camps if these trips have an educational benefit and are related to the curriculum or extracurricular activities of the school. For example, a science teacher accompanying a group of biology students on a camp to a national park to study the ecology of the rainforest can claim a deduction for entrance fees and travel costs.

You can claim a deduction for the cost of using public transport for work travel – for example, from your school to a conference venue.

You can claim a deduction for the cost of first aid training courses if you, as a designated first aid person, are required to undertake first aid training to assist in emergency work situations.

You can claim the costs of hiring equipment used for work. However, if the equipment is also used for private purposes, you cannot claim a deduction for that part of the hire cost.

You can claim the cost of interest on money borrowed to purchase work-related equipment. However, if the equipment was also used for private purposes, you cannot claim a deduction for that part of the interest.

You may be able to claim a deduction for overtime meal expenses you incurred if you received an overtime meal allowance from your employer which was paid under an industrial law, award or agreement.

You can only claim for overtime meal expenses incurred on those occasions when you worked overtime and you received an overtime meal allowance for that overtime. Amounts received as overtime meal allowance must be included as income at item 2 on your tax return.

If you have received an award overtime meal allowance not shown on a payment summary, you may choose not to include the allowance as income at item 2 on your tax return and not claim a deduction, as long as the allowance does not exceed the Commissioner’s (of Taxation) reasonable allowance amounts and you have fully expended it.

An amount for overtime meals that has been folded in as part of your normal salary and wage income is not considered to be an overtime meal allowance.

You can claim a deduction for the cost of attending seminars, conferences and training courses that are sufficiently connected to your work activities.

You can claim a deduction for the cost of teaching aids used for work.

You can claim a deduction for the cost of journals, periodicals and magazines that have a content specifically related to your employment as a teacher.

You can claim a deduction for the cost of work-related telephone calls and rental.

You can claim a deduction for your telephone rental if you can show that you are on call or are regularly required to telephone your employer while you are away from your workplace. If you also use your telephone for private purposes, you must apportion the cost of telephone rental between work-related and private use.

You cannot claim a deduction for the cost of connecting a telephone, mobile phone, pager or any other telecommunications equipment because it is a capital expense.

You cannot claim a deduction for the cost of an unlisted telephone number (silent number) because it is a private expense.

You can claim a deduction for the cost of repairing tools and equipment for work. However, if the tools or equipment were also used for private purposes, you cannot claim a deduction for that part of the repair cost.

You can claim a deduction for union and professional associaion fees. If the amount you paid is shown on your payment summary, you can use it to prove your claim. You can claim a deduction for a levy paid in certain circumstances – for example, to protect the interests of members and their jobs.

You cannot claim a deduction for:

• joining fees
• levies or other amounts you paid to assist families of employees suffering financial difficulties as a result of employees being on strike or having been laid off.

You can claim the costs of repairing a dedicated stopwatch, but not an ordinary wristwatch, even if it is waterproof.

Child care

You cannot claim a deduction for child care expenses. These are private expenses, even if you need to pay for child care to go to work.

Drivers licence

You cannot claim a deduction for the cost of getting or renewing your drivers licence because it is a private expense.

Fitness expenses

You cannot claim a deduction for the cost of fitness expenses – these are private expenses, even for a physical education teacher.

Glasses and contact lenses

You cannot claim a deduction for the cost of buying prescription glasses or contact lenses because it is a private expense relating to a personal medical condition. You may claim the cost of protective sunglasses if you are required to work outdoors and, as a result, are exposed to risk of eye damage from sunlight 

Grooming including hairdressing, cosmetics, hair and skin care products

You cannot claim a deduction for these items because they are private expenses.

Meals

You cannot claim a deduction for the cost of meals eaten during a normal working day because it is a private expense, even if you receive an allowance to cover the meal expense. For information about claiming deductions for the cost of meals eaten during overtime, see Overtime meals.

Newspapers

You cannot claim a deduction for the cost of newspapers because it is a private expense.

Removal and relocation

You cannot claim a deduction for the cost involved in taking up a transfer in an existing employment or taking up new employment with a different employer.

Social functions

You cannot claim a deduction for the cost of attending staff dinners or other social functions.

Student expenses

You cannot claim a deduction for the cost of:

• items you supplied to students for their own individual needs
• gifts you purchased for students
• meeting students’ personal expenses – for example, paying for lunch.

These costs are considered to be private expenses.

Sunglasses, sunhats and sunscreens

You can claim a deduction for the cost of sunglasses, sunhats and sunscreen lotions if the nature of your work requires you to work in the sun for all or part of the day and you use these items to protect yourself from the sun while at work – for example, if you are a school sporting coach for track and field events, in addition to your teaching duties.