Private ruling: Reasonable travel amounts
Published: July 2012
Ruling period: Year ended 30 June 2011
Date scheme commenced: 1 July 2010

Ruling: Q1: Can you claim up to the Commissioner's reasonable allowance amounts for expenses incurred when travelling away from home on work without substantiation? | A1: No


Relevant legislative provisions: Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 Section 8-1 | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 Subdivision 900-B.

Reasons for decision: Summary: Section 8-1 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 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 or private or domestic nature. Taxation Ruling TR 2004/6 examines situations where you may be entitled to an exemption from substantiating travel expenses, where the expense is not more than the reasonable amounts published by the Tax Office. Paragraph 18 of TR 2004/6 states that for domestic travel allowance expenses to be considered for exception from substantiation, you must be paid a bona fide travel allowance. The allowance must be paid to cover work-related travel expenses incurred for travel away from your ordinary residence, undertaken in the course of performing duties as an employee and which involves sleep away from home. Further at paragraph 61 of TR 2004/6 the ruling provides an example where a token amount of allowance, for instance $5 per day to cover meals for travel that involves sleeping away from home, would not be considered a payment that is expected to cover the purchase of three meals per day while travelling for work. The payment would not be considered a travel allowance for the purposes of the exception from substantiation. In your case, you wish to claim the Commissioner's reasonable amounts for your travel expenses. You received a travel allowance of which amounts to approximately $X a day. In comparison to the Commissioner's reasonable amounts the payment is clearly nominal. It is also not reasonable to expect this amount would cover the purchase of your meals, accommodation and incidentals each day. Therefore, it is considered that the allowance you received was not a bona fide travel allowance. Consequently you cannot claim the Commissioner's reasonable allowance amounts for travel away from home. You must substantiate any travel expenses you wish to claim.

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 employed in a particular profession | During the year you were required to stay overnight for a number of days. | You have incurred expenses in relation to this travel, for meals, accommodation and incidentals. | You have no record of your actual expenditure as you have lost all your receipts for your travel expenses.