Tax time’s almost here which means, for a lot of us, a decent chunk of dosh to tuck away for a rainy day – or spend it on something nice if you feel like a little treat.
Now that all of us are ready to jump onto the ATO website and claim a bunch of shit bc MONEYYYYYY, it’s probably a good idea to see what kind of stuff we can actually claim on our tax return.
Here are a couple of things you can claim on your tax return:
Vehicle and travel-related expenses
The most important thing to do here is to keep records of all your work-related travel expenses. That way, you’re not up shit creek come tax time.
That means if you went to dinner at a schmick restaurant while you were away for work, you can claim it. Or if you had to catch a flight to get to some fancy conference that was absolutely not just a holiday, you can do that too.
Just make sure you have some evidence that the trip was indeed for work, and have some documents to back up your claims.
You can’t claim money that you used to travel to and from work on a daily basis as it’s technically considered private travel (I call bullshit), but you can claim travel expenses if you need to explicitly travel somewhere for work.
Me omw to get a new watch with tax return money but then I remember I still have fines due pic.twitter.com/SXn40GsnPX
— Jaxon! (@BurrMoment) July 9, 2023
Laundry and work clothes
As someone who’s avoided dry cleaners like the plague because I don’t feel like I deserve such luxuriously clean clothes, it was positively delightful news to hear that you can claim some of that cost when completing your tax return.
The minor stipulation here is that has to be clothing related to work, so if you wear a uniform or you’re required to wear a suit that needs a dry clean, you can claim that.
If you’re trying to claim some money back on your bed sheets or regular wardrobe, that’s when you’re entering dodgy territory.
Of course, exactly how much you can claim back on tax should be double-checked with your accountant and/or the ATO.
Clothing can only be claimed if it’s specific to your occupation (think: chef’s pants, but not normie old black pants).
You can also claim for clothing or shoes that protect you from illness or injury at work, which might be steel-capped boots or even a wide-brim hat if you’re outdoors a lot for work.
Working from home deductions
If you work from home full-time or even part-time, you’ll be able to claim a bunch of home office expenses, including computers, phones, or other devices. You’ll also be able to claim some cashola on utility expenses at home for when you’re working, like power bills.
You can usually claim equipment straight up if it’s under $300, but if it’s over that, you’ll probably have to use the depreciation method.
This return is a little trickier, so it’s definitely worth speaking to a fancy-pants money person (aka, a financial advisor).
Mobile phone use
If you use your phone for work, you might be able to claim a portion of your expenses on tax. Lucky duck! In these cases, you’ll usually be able to claim a percentage of the cost that relates to your work use.
That means that if you use your phone for work for three hours each day, you’ll need to calculate that against all the other hours you use the phone.
It’s a bit tricky maths-wise (maths v hard), so best to chat with an advisor so you don’t get torn a new one by our tax overlords.
Home office supplies
It’s safe to say a lot of Aussies would’ve invested in some decent office supplies over the past few years, from fancy-schmancy desks to computer monitors and comfy chairs.
The good news is that you’ll be able to claim back a good portion of those expenses (always check the ATO site to figure out just how much you can claim), so while it might’ve initially seemed like a steep investment, that chair will seem all the sweeter now that you should be able to get a bit of compensation for it.
Petrol
Does your work require some driving every now and then? Claim it, people.
There’s a handy guide on the ATO website that tells you how much petrol you can feasibly claim before you get into dicey territory, so make sure you do the maths, keep those petrol receipts and if you’re driving a lot, you might also need to keep a driving log to cover your bases.
Charitable donations
Believe it or not (but do), donating to charities can actually be claimed on tax.
It’s definitely not about you, but being able to claim some tax back on a donation to a charity can feel pretty damn uplifting. So it’s a little bit about you, I suppose. But mainly about those in need. But also a little bit about how good it feels.
Balance.
Self-education expenses
If you’ve gone and done some fine darn good education this year, you might be able to claim the cost of self-education expenses.
Self-education expenses is that stuff that maintains or improves knowledge required for your job or is likely to increase your income at your current gig. Basically, you need to have a job and learn shit that’s relevant to your job.
There are also a bunch of other deductions you can claim on your tax, which you can check out at the official ATO website here.
