Private ruling: Deductions for travel expenses
Published: June 2012
Ruling period: Year ended 30 June 2013
Date scheme commenced: 1 July 2012

Ruling: Q1: Can you claim a deduction for airfare and hotel expenses incurred in relation to your volunteer overseas medical mission? | A1: No.


Relevant legislative provisions: Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 section 8-1 | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 Division 30

Reasons for decision: Summary: Subsection 8-1(1) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (ITAA 1997) provides that you may deduct from your assessable income any loss or outgoing to the extent that: 1. it is incurred in gaining or producing your assessable income; or 2. it is necessarily incurred in carrying on a business for the purpose of gaining or producing your assessable income. As the airfare and hotel expenses that will be incurred are in relation to voluntary work and not gaining or producing assessable income, a deduction under section 8-1 cannot be allowed. Division 30 of the ITAA 1997 allows for the deduction of certain gifts and donations made to a registered deductible gift recipient (DGR), subject to conditions and circumstances defined within its subdivisions. However, at paragraph 83 of Taxation Ruling TR 2005/13, it is stated that services provided to a DGR by volunteers are not tax deductible as there is no transfer of property involved. Likewise any expenses that may be borne by the volunteer in the course of providing the services to the DGR are not deductible as gifts as there is no transfer of property to the DGR. As your volunteer work is a provision of services to a DGR and does not involve a transfer of property as described in TR 2005/13, a deduction for the expenses incurred in relation to this work cannot be allowed under Division 30. Therefore you would not be entitled to claim a deduction for any of the expenses involved in your voluntary activities.

Please check this edited version to be sure that there are no details remaining that you think may allow you to be identified. If you have any concerns about this ruling you wish to discuss, you will find our contact details in the fact sheet. | Relevant facts: You are planning to undertake a volunteer overseas medical mission. | You will incur travel expenses in relation to this mission. | You will be paying the expenses yourself.