Working from home tax deductions in Australia

The two methods

You can use the fixed rate (67c for every hour you worked from home) or the actual cost method (a work-use percentage of each real bill). You cannot mix them in the same year.

Fixed rate — 67c per hour

Simple, but it bundles a lot together. The 67c covers energy, internet, mobile and home phone, stationery, and computer consumables like ink and paper. You cannot claim any of those separately on top.

What you must keep

• A record of every hour worked from home for the full year — a timesheet, roster, spreadsheet or diary. Estimates are no longer accepted.
• One bill for each running cost (to show you actually incurred it).

Actual cost method

Claim a work-use percentage of each real bill. Usually better for a dedicated study, a big internet/phone plan mostly used for work, or high electricity use during work hours.

• Electricity and gas — floor area × hours used for work.
• Internet and phone — work-use percentage from a representative four-week log.
• Cleaning of a dedicated home office.
• Stationery and consumables (receipts required).

Equipment — claimed separately either way

Items under $300 (each) used for work — a keyboard, headset, small monitor — are claimed in full in the year of purchase. Items over $300 (a desk, chair, larger monitor, laptop) are depreciated over their effective life.

Quick reference

Worked example

Priya worked from home 3 days a week, roughly 7.5 hours a day, for 46 weeks — 1,035 hours. At 67c that's $693.45 at D5. She also bought a $220 monitor stand, claimed in full in the same year.

How TaxDuck helps

TaxDuck picks up home-office equipment purchases from your bank statement and maps them to D5, then asks how many hours you worked from home so the 67c fixed-rate claim is added on top.

TaxDuck is a record-keeping tool, not tax advice. For advice specific to your situation, speak to a registered tax agent or see the ATO's page on working-from-home expenses.