Working from home? TAX DEDUCTIONS YOU NEED TO KNOW

FINANCE ADVISOR HELEN BAKER GIVES US TIPS ON WHAT YOU CAN CLAIM AT TAX TIME

- HELEN BAKER

Are you one of the many experiencing, perhaps for the first time, what it’s like to work from home? It’s something about one-third of the Australian workforce – or 3.5 million people – did regularly as a matter of course, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, and yet something some employers resisted … until the COVID-19 pandemic made them. Working from home sees you incurring work-related bills you don’t usually even think about. Two common deductions that come unstuck for employees working from home are ‘running costs’ and what is termed ‘occupancy expenses’.

RUNNING COSTS

Have you ever stopped to think about the costs your employer pays for a safe and comfortable environment in which you usually work? Air-conditioning, lighting, and cleaning are necessary for running expenses. In working from home, you may be able to claim a work-related proportion of your utilities.