what you claim at tax time & RECORD KEEPING GUIDE

You may be able to claim deductions for your work-related expenses. Work-related expenses are expenses you incur on items used to earn your income working in the building and construction industry.

To claim a deduction for a work-related expense:

  • you must have spent the money yourself and weren't reimbursed
  • it must be directly related to earning your income
  • you must have a record to prove it (usually a receipt).
  • If the expense was for both work and private purposes, you can only claim a deduction for the work-related portion.

You can use the ATO app's myDeductions tool to help keep track of your work-related expenses. It’s an easy way to capture information on-the-go and makes tax time quicker by uploading your deductions to your tax return.

For a summary of common deductions:

Records you need to keep

During the financial year you'll receive documents that are important for doing your tax, such as payment summaries and receipts, invoices and contracts.

For a summary of this information in poster format, see Records you need to keep – set the record straight (PDF, 293KB)

Small business instant asset write-offs reduced

On 9 May 2023, as part of the 2023–24 Budget, the Australian Government announced it will improve cash flow and reduce compliance costs for small businesses by temporarily increasing the instant asset write-off threshold to $20,000, from 1 July 2023 until 30 June 2024, limited to businesses with turnover under $10 million.

This measure is now law

Small businesses, with an aggregated turnover of less than $10 million, can immediately deduct the full cost of eligible assets costing less than $20,000 that are first used or installed ready for use between 1 July 2023 and 30 June 2024.

Small businesses that have claimed an immediate deduction for an asset under the simplified depreciation rules in a prior income year can also immediately deduct an amount included in the second element (cost addition) of that asset's cost, where the amount is:

  • the first amount of second element cost incurred after the end of the income year in which the asset was written off
  • less than $20,000
  • incurred between 1 July 2023 and 30 June 2024.

The $20,000 threshold applies on a per asset basis, so small businesses can instantly write off multiple assets.

Assets valued at $20,000 or more can continue to be placed into the small business simplified depreciation pool and depreciated at 15% in the first income year and 30% each income year after that. In addition, pool balances under $20,000 at the end of 2023–24 income year can be written off.

Small business pooling rules can be reapplied for assets in excess of $20,000 (i.e. allowing depreciation of 15% first year and 30% thereafter).