Private ruling: Meals and travel expenses
Published: March 2013
Ruling period: Year ended 30 June 2013
Date scheme commenced: 1 July 2012

Ruling: Q1: Are you entitled to a deduction for meals and travel expenses while you are working interstate? | A1: No.

Relevant facts and circumstances: You have an option to work interstate for a period of time. You will incur all costs for travel and meals, and your employer will pay your accommodation whilst you are interstate. You will continue to pay rent at your usual place of residence.

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

Reasons for decision: Summary: Section 8-1 of the Income Tax Assessment Act (ITAA 1997) allows a deduction for all losses and outgoings to the extent that they are incurred in gaining or producing assessable income, except where the outgoings are capital, private or domestic in nature. It is settled law that expenses of travelling to work are not deductible as they are not incurred in gaining the assessable income, but as a pre-requisite to gaining assessable income (Lunney v FC of T; Hayley v FC of T (1958) 100 CLR 478). 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 that the taxpayer's expenses can be deducted (Taylor v Provan 1975 AC 194). Expenses for meals are normally private or domestic in character. In your case you will be working interstate for a period of several months and considered to be travelling to work rather than on work. Consequently the expenditure incurred for travel and meals are not allowable deductions under section 8-1 of the ITAA 1997 during the period you will be working interstate as they are private in nature.

Authorisation Number: 1012434482687: You cannot rely on the rulings in the Register of private binding rulings in your tax affairs. You can only rely on a private ruling that we have given to you or to someone acting on your behalf. | The Register of private binding rulings is a public record of private rulings issued by the ATO. The register is an historical record of rulings, and we do not update it to reflect changes in the law or our policies. | The rulings in the register have been edited and may not contain all the factual details relevant to each decision. Do not use the register to predict ATO policy or decisions.