📚 Occupation guide

Teacher & educator 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"Classroom supplies, professional development, union fees, home office (67c/hr), resource books, excursion costs. Scan the receipt the day you get it and June takes care of itself."

What you can claim

Classroom supplies purchased personally (stationery, art materials, teaching aids).
Professional development and conferences.
Union fees (AEU, IEU).
Teaching resources (books, DVDs, subscriptions directly related to curriculum).
Home office — 67c per hour if working at home (need diary) or actual cost method.
Self-education maintaining or improving current teaching skills.

What you cannot claim

Self-education for a new career.
Home to school.
General clothing.
Gym.
Personal entertainment (even if used with students).

Apportionment: the part most people get wrong

Resources with personal use — work proportion only. Home office diary required. 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

Receipts, work diary for home office, course documents. 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 resources used personally, home office 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?

Receipts, work diary for home office, course documents. Keep them for five years from when you lodge.

How do I split work and personal use?

Resources with personal use — work proportion only. Home office diary required. Claim the work proportion only.

What gets claims like mine reviewed by the ATO?

Claiming resources used personally, home office 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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