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

Ruling: Q1: Are you entitled to claim a deduction for travel expenses? | A1: No.

Relevant facts and circumstances: You work as a relief teacher and get work on a casual basis usually for one day at a time and when working you usually work at a different school each day. Due to the nature of the work you do not know in advance what class you may be teaching and there are times when you may be with several different year groups during the day. To assist you with your work as a teacher you take with you all your teaching resources and a laptop computer. When you get work at a school for more than one day at a time you are not provided with a place to safely store you resources so you take them home.

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 losses and outgoings to the extent to which they are incurred in gaining or producing assessable income. However, no deduction is allowed for expenses to the extent to which they are of a capital, private or domestic nature. Taxation Ruling TR 95/14 addresses the issue of work related deductions for employee teachers. The ruling states in relation to travel between home and work that a deduction is not allowable for the cost of travel by an employee teacher between home and his or her normal work place as it is generally considered to be a private expense. The character of the travel does not change for supply and relief teachers or teachers 'on call', that is, the travel remains private. There are circumstances where a teacher may be allowed a deduction for home to work travel, for example, when transporting bulky equipment. A deduction may be allowable if the motor vehicle expenses can be attributed to the transportation of bulky equipment rather than to private travel between home and work. (See FCT v Vogt 75 ATC 4073; 5 ATR 274). In Case U112 87 ATC 672, the taxpayer was a casual teacher with a State Education Department. At times she was offered relief work on short notice by local schools. In order to secure and maintain appointments, it was important for the taxpayer to respond to calls quickly. To enable her to do so, the taxpayer drove between her home and the school where she was working on a particular day. To assist with her teaching duties, the taxpayer carried in her car teaching materials, including a lightweight projector, which she used when required. It was held that the costs of travelling between home and each school were not deductible. The taxpayer's circumstances were not sufficient to take her outside the ordinary rule that home to work travel was not deductible. Your teaching resources, including a portable computer are carried in your car when travelling to work. The size and weight of these resources are not considered to be bulky. Your travel expenses are not attributed to the transporting of this equipment, but to the private travel between home and work. The teaching materials do not change the nature of your travel. Furthermore, the distance between your home and work or the fact that public transport is not available does not change the character of your travel. As such, no deduction in respect of this travel is an allowable deduction. In your case, your travel between home and work is considered to be private in nature. Your travel does not come within any of the above exceptional circumstances. The travel expenses are a prerequisite to the earning of assessable income, and are not incurred in the course of gaining or producing your assessable income. Accordingly your travel expenses from home to work are not deductible.