Private ruling: Travel expenses - between home and work
Published: July 2012
Ruling period: Year ended 30 June 2010 | Year ended 30 June 2011 | Year ended 30 June 2012
Date scheme commenced: 1 July 2009

Ruling: Q1: Are you entitled to a deduction for the cost of travel between home and work? | A1: No. | Q2: If so, are you able to amend previous years income tax returns? | A2: As you are not entitled to a deduction we have not considered this question.

Relevant facts and circumstances: You use your laptop for work purposes. You are required by your employer to take your laptop with you to and from work as your agreement states that you must keep the laptop under your personal control at all times both during and outside of work hours.

Relevant legislative provisions: Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 Section 8-1.

Reasons for decision: Summary: Section 8-1 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 allows a deduction for all losses and outgoings to the extent to which they are incurred in gaining or producing assessable income except where the outgoings are of a capital, private or domestic nature, or relate to the earning of exempt income. Expenses of travelling from home to work are generally not deductible ( Lunney & Hayley v. Federal Commissioner of Taxation (1958) 100 CLR 478; 77 ATC 4076; 7 ATR 166), as the expenses are not incurred in the course of gaining assessable income. Rather, the expenses are incurred to enable the taxpayer to commence income earning activities. The travel expenses are generally considered to be private in nature. However, a deduction may be allowable if the transport costs can be attributed to the transportation of bulky equipment rather than to private travel between home and work ( FC of T v. Vogt 75 ATC 4073; 5 ATR 274). Taxation Ruling TR 95/14, which considers various deductions that are available for employee teachers, provides the following example: On a particular day, Belinda, an employee drama teacher, drives from home to her regular school with bulky props and costumes needed for the school play. She is entitled to a deduction for her travelling costs. Her travel that day relates to getting the costumes, and not herself, to work. In considering what is bulky, the size, weight and shape of the equipment must be taken into account. However, it is not possible to determine a particular size, weight or shape that is considered bulky. In Crestani v. Federal Commissioner of Taxation {1998} 40 ATR 1037; 98 ATC 2219 a tool box with a weight of 27 kilograms with a height of 10.5 inches, width of 10 inches and length of 22.5 inches was considered to be bulky. In your case you are required to keep your laptop with you at all times, even when travelling to and from work. However, a laptop is not considered bulky for the purposes of allowing you a deduction for the travel expenses. Accordingly, you are not entitled to a deduction for travel expenses between home and work.

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