Private ruling: Work related travel
Published: August 2014
Ruling period: Income year ended 30 June 2014
Date scheme commenced: 1 July 2013

Ruling: Q1: Can you claim a deduction for travel to receive medical treatment for an injury that occurred in the workplace? | A1: No

Relevant facts and circumstances: You were injured at work. You had a workers compensation claim last financial year. You did not receive a payout but had physio and specialist appointments reimbursed. You incurred expenses in traveling to physio and specialist appointments. Work cover does not pay for kilometres travelled unless you have to travel more than 50 kilometres. You have kept records of the dates and kilometres travelled.

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 (ITAA 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. Generally medical expenses have no direct connection to the gaining or producing of assessable income and a deduction is not allowable. Medical expenses are usually a prerequisite to the earning of assessable income and relate to a personal medical condition and are private in nature. Travel undertaken to receive medical treatment for a work-related injury was discussed in Rossitto v. FC of T 98 ATC 2093 ( Rossitto ). In this case, the taxpayer severely damaged his knee in a work-related injury and liability was accepted for compensation. The taxpayer argued that the cost of regular travel by motor vehicle to his doctor, physiotherapy treatment and specialist doctors was necessarily incurred in deriving the compensation income. He further argued that the payment of compensation was conditional on the maintenance of a rehabilitation program. However, the claim for travel costs failed as they did not have the required nexus with the derivation of assessable income and were found to be of a private or domestic nature. It was difficult to separate the private and personal nature of medical treatment and its relationship with the derivation of income. The case concluded that, in the same way as travelling to a place of employment is not deductible, travel to receive medical treatment, even if it could be said that such medical treatment is a prerequisite to earning income is equally non-deductible. Consequently the cost of travel to receive medical treatment is considered private in nature and not deductible. Accordingly, you are not entitled to a deduction for any travel expenses incurred to go to your medical practitioner for treatment. Similarly, the costs of travel into the public domain and the costs of medication are regarded as private in nature and not an allowable deduction.