Saturday 4 June 2022 08:22 AM Tim Tams, dog food, edible undies, toilet paper - the bizarre tax deductions ... trends now
If you think Tim Tams, ciggies and toilet paper are legit work-related deductions in your tax return, be warned: the Australian Taxation Office is ready for you.
The ATO will begin scrutinising claims with returns being lodged from July 7 and expects to start paying refunds from July 16.
Aussies have a long history of dubious deductions sought at tax time and the ATO is likely to be dusting off its index of illegal and frankly bizarre claims.
The ATO will begin scrutinising claims with returns being lodged from July 7 and expects to start paying refunds from July 16. But it has warned it is on the lookout for dubious claims for work-related expenses. Gym membership is one such claim
One Australian taxpayer claimed dog food provided to his pet was a work-related expense
Some of the weirder claims Aussies have tried to get money back from the ATO include dog food, dental work, gambling losses, toilet paper, cigarettes, vapes and holidays that were not only unrelated to work, they were entirely faked.
In 2020 a NSW man was fined $1,500 and given a criminal conviction for falsely claiming a fake holiday.
'The bank exec claimed more than $15,000 in travel expenses for ‘overseas conferences’ even though he hadn’t left the country that financial year' the ATO explained.
Another taxpayer claimed a fantasy holiday that never even happened, stating it was for a convention
Even though you need these, they are not and never will be tax-deductible as a work-related expense
Even though the rules are clear - a deduction needs to be related to earning an income and we need proof the amount has been spent - Australians cannot seem to resist trying our luck at tax time.
'No matter how clear, people try to bend these rules,' said a statement from ITP Accounting Professionals.
'Many dubious claims are made in the ‘other’ expenses column, including non-allowable items such as wedding reception costs, dental, childcare, gambling losses, alcohol, and even cigarettes.'
ATO assistant commissioner Tim Loh ([pictured) said toilet paper, tea, coffee and Tim Tams are examples of personal expenses that are not related to earning an income but have been claimed before
