Every tax season, plenty of people log into myTax, copy across their salary, click through, and lodge. It takes ten minutes and it feels efficient. It also quietly leaves money on the table, because the return only shows income until you add the deductions yourself.
A deduction is any money you spent earning your income that the tax office lets you subtract before your tax is worked out. Here are the ones people most often forget, and what you need to actually claim them.
1. Working from home
If you do part of your job from home, you can claim the hours. The simplest way is the fixed rate method: 70 cents for every hour you work from home in 2025–26, which covers electricity, gas, internet, phone and stationery in one figure.[1] The catch is records. You need a genuine log of your hours across the year, not an estimate written the night before you lodge. A running note in your phone calendar is enough.
2. Car and travel for work
Driving between two workplaces, out to see clients, or to pick up supplies counts. Commuting from home to your regular office does not. The easy method is cents per kilometre: 88 cents per work kilometre for 2025–26, up to 5,000 kilometres per car.[2] You don’t keep receipts for this method, but you do need to show how you worked out the kilometres, so keep a simple record of the trips.
3. Tools, equipment and the desk you bought
Anything you bought to do your job can usually be claimed. If an item cost $300 or less, you claim the full amount this year.[3] Over $300, you claim it gradually over its useful life. This is where the ergonomic chair, the second monitor, the drill, the laptop bag all get missed, because people assume small purchases aren’t worth listing. Across a year they add up.
4. Learning that relates to your current job
Courses, seminars, professional subscriptions and industry certifications can be deductible when they connect to the job you already do and help you earn more in it. A course that trains you for a completely different career doesn’t qualify. Keep the invoices and a short note on how each one relates to your work.
5. Income protection insurance
Premiums for income protection cover held outside your super are generally deductible, and this one is easy to forget because it’s paid quietly by direct debit. Your insurer’s annual statement usually spells out the deductible portion.
6. Donations, and the tax agent fee itself
Gifts of $2 or more to a registered deductible gift recipient are claimable, so the charity receipts sitting in your inbox are worth gathering. And the fee you paid an accountant to handle last year’s return is itself deductible on this year’s return.[4] Paying a professional to get it right costs less than the headline number suggests.
Two rules that trip people up
Two tests sit behind all of this. First, the expense has to relate to earning your income, not your private life. Second, you generally need a record. The tax office has been direct that unverified or estimated claims are what draws attention, so the deduction is only as safe as the proof behind it. If you’re not sure whether something counts, that uncertainty is exactly the thing to ask about rather than guess.
When it’s worth having an accountant do it
If your return is one salary and a handful of receipts, myTax handles it fine. It’s worth bringing in a registered tax agent when you have more than one job, side or self-employed income, investments, a change in your situation during the year, or simply a stack of deductions you’re unsure about. A good agent usually finds enough legitimate deductions to more than cover their fee, and their fee is deductible next year. If you’d like a hand, you can talk to us about your return.
FAQ
Q: Can I claim without receipts?
A: For most work expenses you need records. The cents per kilometre car method is the main exception, though you still have to show how you worked out the kilometres.
Q: How far back can I claim a deduction I forgot?
A: You can usually amend a past return to add a deduction you missed. A tax agent can check which years are still open to you.
Q: Is the working from home rate really only 70 cents an hour?
A: The fixed rate is 70 cents an hour for 2025–26 and covers your running costs in one figure. There’s also an actual cost method, which can be higher but needs far more detailed records.
Q: Are my accountant’s fees deductible?
A: Yes. The cost of managing your tax affairs, including a registered tax agent’s fee, is claimable on the following year’s return.
Get your deductions right this year
Send us your situation — your job, whether you work from home, any side income or investments — and we’ll make sure the deductions you’re entitled to actually make it onto the return.
📍 Melbourne, Camberwell (1381 Toorak Rd, Camberwell VIC 3124) · Brisbane, Eight Mile Plains (3 Clunies Ross Court, Eight Mile Plains QLD 4113) | CPA · Registered Tax Agents · since 2013
Author: Lily Zhang, Founder and Principal Accountant (CPA) at Wiselink Accountants. Last updated: 17 July 2026.
This article is general information and not personal tax advice; your own deductions depend on your circumstances and the ATO’s rules.
Sources:
[1] ATO — Working from home, fixed rate method (70c/hour, 2025–26): https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals-and-families/income-deductions-offsets-and-records/deductions-you-can-claim/work-related-deductions/working-from-home-expenses/fixed-rate-method
[2] ATO — Cents per kilometre method (88c/km, up to 5,000km, 2025–26): https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals-and-families/income-deductions-offsets-and-records/deductions-you-can-claim/work-related-deductions/cars-transport-and-travel/motor-vehicle-and-car-expenses/expenses-for-a-car-you-own-or-lease/cents-per-kilometre-method
[3] ATO — Tools, equipment and other assets ($300 immediate deduction): https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals-and-families/income-deductions-offsets-and-records/deductions-you-can-claim/tools-computers-and-items-you-use-for-work
[4] ATO — Cost of managing tax affairs (tax agent fees deductible): https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals-and-families/income-deductions-offsets-and-records/deductions-you-can-claim/cost-of-managing-tax-affairs
