Revised fixed rate

The ATO has made changes to working from home expenses claims from 1 July 2022 with a new revised fixed rate.

The revised fixed rate (67c/hour) covers additional:-

  • Energy costs (electricity and gas)
  • Internet expenses
  • Mobile and home phone expenses
  • Stationery
  • Computer consumables

In order to use the revised fixed rate (67c/hour), you must:

  • Work from home while carrying out employment duties (not just completing minimal tasks), or carrying on business.
  • Incur additional running expenses as outlined above, as a result of working from home.
  • Keep and retain relevant records of the time spent working from home and for the additional running expenses being incurred.

Record keeping

You will now need to provide a representative record of the total number of hours worked from home for the period 1 July 2022 to 28 February 2023 in the 2022/2023 year and a record of the total number of actual hours worked for the 1 March 2023 to 30 June 2023 period.  Consequently, estimates will not be acceptable and the record of hours may be in the form of timesheets, rosters, a diary or similar, and be maintained in real time!

Decline in value of assets

Also, you will now be able to claim a separate deduction for depreciation of work related equipment and office furniture used when working from home.  You will need to provide records that show when and where you bought the item and its cost, when you started using the item for work related purposes and how you calculated the percentage of work-related use (e.g. using a diary).

The traditional requirement for the home office to be a separate and dedicated work area no longer applies in respect of any “working from home” claim.

Alternatively, you may use the actual cost method, however this method requires detailed calculations and records such as electricity bills showing unit costs and the average units used per hour.

 

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