Tax Deductions for Nurses

IN THIS ARTICLE

• Overtime meal expenses
• Travel expenses
• Car expenses
• Uniforms and protective clothing
• Equipment and tools
• Other work-related expenses
• General expenses

DEDUCTIONS YOU CAN CLAIM

OVERTIME MEAL EXPENSES

If you receive a meal allowance from your employer that is based on an industrial legislation, award, or agreement and that allowance is reflected separately on your PAYG certificate, you may be able to claim the cost of meals when working overtime. Without keeping receipts, you can claim the full cost of the meal or the maximum allowed by the Australian Taxation Office. Any amounts claimed in excess of that must be accompanied by receipts.

TRAVEL EXPENSES

If you are traveling to or from meetings, seminars, conferences, or training that are not being held at your regular place of employment, you may be able to claim the cost of your trip (including any parking, tolls, taxis, and public transportation).

If you must spend the night away from home for the reasons mentioned above, you may be able to claim a tax deduction for the cost of your lodging and any meals you ate.

CAR EXPENSES

If you use your personal vehicle for work-related activities, such as traveling to conferences, meetings, or training sessions that are not hosted at your regular place of employment or seeing patients in their homes, you may be able to deduct the expense of the vehicle. You must keep a trip log if you intend to claim reimbursement for the expense of using your own vehicle so that you can estimate the distance you traveled.

UNIFORMS AND PROTECTIVE CLOTHING

You may deduct the price of a uniform that is unique to your line of work.

There are a variety of protective clothing products that can be deducted from your taxes, such as stockings and non-slip nursing shoes.

Any of the aforementioned work-related or protective clothing that you rent, fix, or clean can be written off.

EQUIPMENT AND TOOLS

Typical equipment and tools eligible for a tax deduction for teachers include:

• Fob watches
• Medical tools and implements
• Electronic equipment such as computers and mobile phones
• Stationery such as diaries, organisers, and log books
• Briefcases and laptop carry bags

OTHER WORK-RELATED EXPENSES

There are a number of other work related expenses that may be claimed as tax deductions by teachers, including:

• Registration fees
• Nursing association or union fees
• Annual practicing certificate
• Agency commission fees
• Subscriptions to professional journals and magazines

GENERAL EXPENSES

There is also a range of general tax deductions, available to all regardless of profession or occupation, including:

• Fees for conferences and seminars
• Reference books
• Self-education
• Telephone and internet fees (for the work-related portion only)
• Cost of a home office
• Tax agent fees
• Gifts to recognized nonprofits
• Income Protection Insurance

DEDUCTIONS YOU CANNOT CLAIM

• Regardless of the distance traveled or if you work outside of regular business hours, you cannot deduct the cost of your commute from home to work and vice versa for car expenditures.\You cannot deduct the cost of purchasing, renting, mending, or cleaning the regular attire you wear to work for clothing and laundry expenses. This also applies to shoes.
• You cannot claim phone, data, or internet costs for talking with your manager or for reviewing your paystubs, income statements, rosters, etc.
• When it comes to self-education and study, you cannot deduct costs if the same broad themes are covered or if the results will be utilized to help you land a new employment. This also holds true if your company pays for your schooling and study expenses.
• Private subscriptions, immunizations, flu shots, and childcare—even if you have to pay for them because of your job—are additional costs. This holds true even if your company pays your expenditures.