💻 Occupation guide

IT professional tax deductions: what you can claim

What you can claim, what you cannot, and the records the ATO expects. Written in plain English and updated for the 2025–26 financial year.

Oscar says"Home office, phone, internet, courses, software subscriptions, cloud storage, equipment. Scan the receipt the day you get it and June takes care of itself."

What you can claim

Home office — 67c/hr or actual cost method (dedicated work area required for actual cost).
Computer, monitor, keyboard — work proportion.
Phone — work proportion (4-week diary).
Internet — work proportion.
Software subscriptions (work-related only).
Courses, certifications (AWS, Azure, CompTIA etc).
Technical books and journals.
Professional memberships (ACS).

What you cannot claim

Equipment employer provides.
Games or personal software.
Home internet if no work-from-home arrangement.

Apportionment: the part most people get wrong

Phone — 4-week diary. Computer — percentage of work use. Internet — percentage of work use. If an expense is part work and part personal, you claim the work percentage only, and the ATO expects you to show how you worked it out.

Records you need to keep

Diary for home office hours, receipts, employer WFH agreement. A claim without a receipt or tax invoice behind it is a claim you may have to repay if the ATO asks.

ATO red flags for this occupation: Claiming 100% of phone/internet without diary. These are the patterns that trigger review letters, so keep airtight records for exactly these claims.

Common questions

What records do I need to keep?

Diary for home office hours, receipts, employer WFH agreement. Keep them for five years from when you lodge.

How do I split work and personal use?

Phone — 4-week diary. Computer — percentage of work use. Internet — percentage of work use. Claim the work proportion only.

What gets claims like mine reviewed by the ATO?

Claiming 100% of phone/internet without diary. Solid receipts and logs are the answer to all of them.

Oscar already knows these rules

Pick your occupation once, then scan, email, or forward receipts. Oscar classifies each one against these exact ATO rules and tells you what it is worth. Free to start.

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