The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has announced changes to their fixed rate method for claiming work from home expenses, effective from the 2022-23 income year. The new fixed rate per hour has increased from 52 cents to 67 cents, and the temporary COVID rate will no longer apply.
The way in which work from home hours are calculated has also changed. For the period between 1 July 2022 and 28 February 2023, a record that is representative of the total number of hours worked from home, such as a 4-week diary, will be accepted. This was the method used in previous years. From 1 March 2023 onwards, a complete and written record of the total number of hours worked from home will be required.
To claim deductions, all work from home hours must be recorded in a timely manner and maintained for the entire year. Examples of accepted records include timesheets, rosters, logs of time, or diaries. The fixed rate method covers energy expenses, phone usage, internet, stationery, and computer consumables, with no further deduction allowed for any expenses covered by the rate. Evidence of incurred expenses must be kept with the tax records.
The revised fixed rate method no longer requires taxpayers to have a dedicated home office space to claim working from home expenses and a separate deduction can be made for depreciation of assets, repairs and maintenance, and cleaning costs associated with a dedicated home office.
Other methods of claiming work from home deductions have not changed.
If you are currently working from home and have not yet started tracking your work hours, we strongly encourage you to do so now. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any concerns or questions about the changes.
