Tax Deductions for FIFO Workers

Fly into your tax return, and fly out all the expenses you have paid throughout the year as tax deductions! Don’t leave anything out of your online tax return. If you save every little bit, and deduct everything you’re entitled to, the tax return can be massive. 

When it comes down to it, there are three main criteria that qualifies an expense for tax deduction, which is calculated against your income: 

• You must have spent the money and not have been reimbursed 
• It must be related to your job
• You must have a record to prove it

However, this in itself can be hard to understand. What constitutes “work related” expenses for deduction? Here is what defines your taxable income, and some expenses for fly in fly out tax deductions that you can deduct on your next online tax return.

Remember, a record isn’t necessarily a receipt. There are tax deductions you can claim without a receipt. Continue on to find out more.

So, what can FIFO workers claim on tax? Let’s first look at what taxable income is then we’ll look at FIFO tax deductions.

What Is Your Taxable Income

Your taxable income is money generated from your employer or your work. Your taxable income also includes:

• PAYG summaries 
• Pensions and government allowances 
• Interest earned (banks etc)
• Dividends 
• Rental property income
• Business income
• Other income earned (capital gains etc)

Tax Deductible Expenses For FIFO Workers 

FIFO Worker Specific 

1. Purchasing site uniforms with your company logo on it
2. Laundry for your compulsory uniforms 
3. Certificates to operate machinery (not including driver’s license)
4. Protective clothing you will need for on site, such as sunglasses, high-vis, steel-cap boots and hard hats
5. Purchase of equipment and tools up to $300 
6. Depreciation expense of equipment and tools over $300
7. The repair and maintenance of equipment 
8. Interest on loans for work related expenses
9. Self-education and courses
10. Work union fees/other similar organisations 
11. Subscriptions and magazines that relate to your work 
12. Travel expenses if work related (conferences, field trips etc)
13. Driving between two places of work in your own vehicle. This is usually best claimed using the cents per km method of claiming a tax deduction.

Although this is a solid list of what FIFO workers claim on tax, read on for a few more tax tips.

A Deduction to Be Aware of For FIFO Workers 

If you’re a FIFO worker, chances are there are an amount of meals included for you when you’re on shift. Any extra food and snacks you consume is an expense you have to take. 

However, if you have to buy a meal for yourself while on overtime, which is not included in your on shift allowance, the ATO overtime meal allowance means you can claim the expense of that meal as a tax deduction. 

Living Expenses On Shift 

While on shift working FIFO, you can claim just about anything you purchase while on site. This can be from toiletries to even alcohol.

Zone Tax Offsets 

For some rural areas of Australia, the cost of living, rates and services are much higher. If you live, or work (even as fifo work) in one of these zones, there is a remote area allowance from ATO. Check out the ATO or consult a professional to find out more.

General 

1. Car expenses and general wear (estimated Km or a logbook with all expense items)
2. Travel expenses for your work (flights, taxis and trains etc)
3. Accommodation needed on work reasons (including meals)
4. Phone bills for work
5. Work related computing 
6. Working from home costs 
7. Self-education expenses
8. Tax return fees dating to the year previous 
9. Insurances 
10. Rental expense (if you are renting)
11. Charity donations and gifts
12. Sun protection (if you have to work outside)

This is a general tax deduction list and not just for FIFO tax deductions. Although we definitely see FIFO tax deductions regularly for a number of these items.

Maximising Your Tax Return With An Online Tax Agent

There will be more you can deduct that isn’t on this list. Tax deductions are not only industry specific, but also change from individual to individual.

The best way to claim the most you can is with a tax agent like One Click Life. We have made the process simple with 5 easy steps.

The more you deduct, the less tax you pay and the more money you can spend on yourself. Clearly, you will want to deduct the most you can, and the sure-fire way to do that is with a tax agent or accountant. If you can claim your tax agent/tax return fee back on tax, why wouldn’t you use one to minimise your tax?

One Click Life offers fast online tax returns at your fingertips in an easy-to-use platform run by industry professionals. 

Taxes, health insurance, and wills can be time-consuming and tedious. Our app allows you to be able to do this fuss-free, giving you a simple way to organise, track and manage all of your life admin in one place.
Let One Click Life take care of your tax return, and life’s essential tasks so you can spend more time doing the things you love.