What can a teacher claim on their Tax?

What can a Teacher claim as a Tax Deduction?

If you are a teacher, then just like many other teachers and professions in our wonderful Country, you will most likely spend your own personal money on work-related items.

The good news is, you can claim some of these back as tax deductions on your tax return.

Now don’t get too excited – first you need to remember the ATO’s 3 golden rules:

1. You must have spent the money yourself, and not been given the money back from your boss.
2. It must be directly related to earning your wage.
3. You must have a record to prove that you spent the money and what you spent it on – see our record keeping blog for more info

Now that we have the rules out of the way – see below a list of the common deductions’ teachers may be able claim:

• Teacher Registration Fees

• Union Fees

• Working with children/blue card costs

• Stationery

• Home Office (If you need to work from home and you work in an office – you can’t work at your kitchen table)

• Equipment (If you don’t use it 100% for work, you need to work out how much is work use and how much is personal)

• Excursions/School Trips/Camps

• Self-Education Expenses

• Clothing – this needs to have the company logo on it

• Protective Equipment e.g. sunhats and sunglasses

You can’t claim

• Gift’s purchased for students
• Student’s personal expenses e.g. buying their lunches or uniforms
• Travel from home to work

When completing your Gotax Online E-Tax Return, there will be an option to enter in your deductions for any work-related expenses. If you aren’t sure whether you can claim a deduction you can give one of our fully qualified tax accountants a call and they can help you out. 

Teachers!
Claim your tax deductions now with GoTax Online! 

Note that the information provided is general in nature and subject to change, please contact one of our professionals who can evaluate your circumstances and provide more accurate advice to your current situation.