Aussies are famous for ‘trying it on’ when it comes to tax deductions – the Australian Tax Office (ATO) estimates that in just one financial year, we illegally over-claimed more than $8.7 billion.
Now accounting firm H&R Block has released a list of the worst offenders – and they’re as strange as you’d expect:
- European holidays – In one case, a tradie went to Paris and tried to claim his travel expenses as “researching his craft”. But while he’d brushed up on his French, his craftsman skills weren’t noticeably improved so the deduction was knocked back.
- Edible underwear – We wonder what the argument for this was.
- Cigarettes – one taxpayer said his habit was a form of “stress relief”. Denied.
- Sunscreen and a brollie – Sounds reasonable if you work outdoors, but one client tried to claim this because his office forced him to go to the park across the road for a smoko. Denied.
- Implants – Turns out there’s actually an argument for breast enlargements to be considered tax deductible as “tools of the trade” for ‘adult performers’. But one lady with no connection to the adult industry who said they were required for work (please tell us how?) had her claim thrown out.
- Furry friends – farmers and security guards can sometimes claim the costs of buying a dog and its food and vet bills. But a Maltese terrier as a guard dog – no.
- Children – in 2016, one man claimed $5,000 in “secretarial services” from his eight-year-old son, who sometimes answered the phone at home for him. Unsurprisingly, the ATO threw the book at him.
The ATO says there are three golden rules for claiming a work-related deduction: you must have spent the money yourself; it must directly related to earning your income and you must have a record to prove it.
I’m taking that to mean I can still claim for all my café coffees then.
