Private ruling: Meals
Published: September 2013
Ruling period: Year ended 30 June 2013
Date scheme commenced: 1 July 2012

Ruling: Q1: Are you entitled to a deduction for meals that you can substantiate when you are away from home staying in a caravan? | A1: Yes.


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, or relate to the earning of exempt income. Meal expenses are normally private or domestic in character. However, where a taxpayer is away from home overnight in connection with an income producing activity, meal expenses are deductible under section 8-1 of the ITAA 1997. The expenditure is not considered private because its occasion is the taxpayer's travel away from home on income producing activities. In considering the deductibility of travel expenses, a distinction is made between travel to work and travel on work. It is only if the duties of the job require a taxpayer to travel in the course of undertaking their work duties that the taxpayer's expenses can be deducted ( Taylor v Provan 1975 AC 194). In your case, it is considered that when you are away from home overnight and staying in a caravan provided by your employer, you are travelling on work. You are therefore, entitled to a deduction for meals. However, as you do not receive a bona fide meal allowance, you cannot rely on the relief from substantiation provisions and you must be able to substantiate all of your claims.

You usually work at different locations close enough to home that you return home each night. | On some occasions you work a long distance from home and on these occasions, your employer provides you with a caravan close to the work site and also pays for site fees when necessary. | The duration of your stay in the caravan is usually three to four weeks and you return home to your family when possible on days off.