Itinerant “flexibility” not so flexible

It is generally assumed that there is a degree of flexibility within the tax law over particular work travel claims that arise where the nature of the employment is deemed to be itinerant.

If you do itinerant work (or have shifting places of work) you can claim the cost for driving between workplaces and your home. Note that you cannot count your home as a workplace unless you carry out itinerant work.

The ATO says that the following factors may indicate that you do itinerant work:

• Travel is a fundamental part of your work due to the very nature of yoru work, not jsut because it is convenient to you or your employer
• You have a “web” of work places you travel to throughout the day
• You continually travel from one work site to another
• Your home is a base of operations – if you start work at home and cannot complete it until you attend at your work site
• You are often uncertain of the location of your work site
• Your employer provides an allowance in recognition of your need to travel continually between different work sites and you use this allowance to pay for your travel.

The Key Message

Over the past few years, the ATO has been setting its sights on incorrectly claimed work related travel expenses (for example, care expenses, flights and accommodation). This focus is expected to continue, and the ATO has warned that it will pay extra attention to people whose work-related deductions are higher than expected.

Please note that entitlement to a deduction for work-related travel expenses will depend on your individual circumstances.

If you are unsure whether you can claim work-related travel expenses, please contact us on (07) 3263 7030 or email tax@mcfillin.com and we’d be more then happy to discuss with you.