Truckies Tax | Income Tax Returns

What can Truckies claim on their Income Tax?

If you are a truckie and need to travel overnight, or for days on end, the work-related expenses can really add up. The good news is that you can claim some of these expenses back on your Gotax Online etax return and you can do it while on the road!

A few things to remember before making any claims are:

1. You need to keep a record of what you have spent (See our record keeping blog for more info)
2. It must be directly related to earning your wage
3. You must spend the money yourself and not be reimbursed for it

 So, what can a good old truckie claim? See below common tax deductions claimed by truckies:

Overtime Meal/Travel Expenses

You can claim overtime meal and travel expenses if you have received an allowance and it’s on your payment summary without providing receipts as long as your claim is under the ATO reasonable rates. It’s always a good idea to keep all your receipts in case you spend more than the ATO rate.  

If you haven’t received an allowance, make sure you keep all your receipts as proof of purchase.

Motor Vehicle Expenses

There are two ways you can do this:

1. Cents per KM method
2. Logbook method

The rules for this are:

- You must have transported bulky tools/equipment 20kg or over if there is no safe place to store them at work
- You travelled between separate jobs
- You needed to drive to and from an alternating workplace (e.g. you needed to drive from one depot to another)

Licences

You can claim back the cost of your machinery/truck licences – make sure you keep those receipts!

Protective Clothing

Protective clothing could include: high vis wear, boots, hard hats, sun protection etc.

Work tools & equipment

If you needed to purchase tools and equipment to put in the truck etc, you can claim back the costs of these.
Note: If the tools/equipment is over $300 they will need to be depreciated.

Clothing

If you need to wear a uniform specific to your job – e.g. it has a permanent logo attached.

You can claim back the cost of purchasing your uniform and the laundry costs this is $1 per load if washed alone or 50c per load if washed with other clothing.

Phone & Internet

If you need to use your personal phone for calls/texts/internet while on the road, keep a one-month logbook so that we can work out a business percentage on your e-tax return to claim back a portion of the costs.

The above deductions are the common deductions that Truckies may want to claim back.

Other general tax deductions may include:

• Donations
• Bank fees
• Tax agent fees
• The cost of travelling to see your tax agent

Gotax Online provides the flexibility for you to prepare your etax Return whether you are at home or on the road. It’s a Simple, Easy and Fun way to prepare and lodge your tax return at an affordable price.

What makes our etax return so different to the Governments Tax Site? You are guided by the professionals. You will receive tax support and advice from fully qualified accountants via our state of the art etax filing system. You'll never miss the tax deductions you're entitled to again. 

So let’s get Truckin’!!!

Truckies! Get the tax deductions you deserve!
Our expert Truckie system will help you get back what you’re entitled to!

Quick Income Tax returns $10, Income Tax returns with the lot $49 and if it’s your first time, you can do it for FREE!

Note that the information provided is general in nature and subject to change, please contact one of our professionals who can evaluate your circumstances and provide more accurate advice to your current situation.