How Much Tax Are You Leaving on the Table? The Support Worker's Complete Guide to ATO Deductions

Ask most aged care and NDIS support workers what they claimed on their last tax return and the answer is usually the same: not much. Maybe a bit of petrol. Maybe nothing at all.

This is one of the most expensive mistakes this workforce makes every year.

Support workers and aged care workers have one of the most complex personal tax situations of any working Australian – multiple employers, significant vehicle use, training expenses, union fees, equipment costs. The ATO allows deductions for all of it. Yet most workers either don't know what they can claim or don't have the records to prove it at tax time.

This guide covers every major deduction available to support workers and aged care workers in Australia, what records you need to keep, and how to make sure you're capturing everything throughout the year rather than scrambling in June.

This article provides general information only. It is not tax advice. Speak with a registered tax agent for advice specific to your circumstances.

Why Support Workers Are Among the Most Under-Claiming Workers in Australia

The Record-Keeping Problem

The ATO does not require receipts for the cents per kilometre vehicle claim method – but it does require a record showing how you worked out your work-related kilometres. That record needs to exist contemporaneously: created at the time, not reconstructed from memory at the end of the financial year.

Most support workers drive significant distances for work – between clients, to training, to pick up equipment. But without a mileage log kept throughout the year, there is nothing to show an ATO reviewer how those kilometres were calculated. So workers either don't claim at all, or estimate conservatively and under-claim.

The same problem applies to work expenses. Scrubs bought in August. First aid course fees paid in March. Union membership renewed in January. Without a running log, these costs are forgotten by June and never claimed.

The Multiple Employer Complexity

Many support workers – particularly those working in home care or the NDIS sector – work across two, three or even four providers simultaneously. This creates a complex tax picture: multiple payment summaries, potentially different superannuation funds, different pay rates under different Awards or Enterprise Agreements.

Without a systematic record, reconciling all of this at tax time becomes stressful and error-prone. Workers who can't easily reconcile their income often end up paying a tax agent significant fees to sort it out – fees which are themselves deductible, but only if you remember to claim them.

The 5 Main Deductions for Aged Care and Support Workers

1. Vehicle and Travel Expenses

This is typically the largest deduction available to home care and community support workers.

Work-related travel includes:

• Driving between clients during a shift
• Driving from your home to a client's home if your home is your principal place of work (common for workers who do admin, care planning or case management from home before their first visit)
• Driving to training, professional development or mandatory inductions
• Driving between worksites if you work for multiple providers in a day

Work-related travel does not include your regular commute from home to a fixed workplace and back. The ATO is strict on this distinction.

The Cents Per Kilometre Method

For most support workers, the cents per kilometre method is the simplest and most appropriate vehicle claim approach. You multiply your total work-related kilometres by the current ATO rate (check the current rate at ato.gov.au – it is reviewed annually) to calculate your deduction.

The maximum claim under this method is 5,000 work-related kilometres per car per year. For workers driving more than 5,000 kilometres for work annually – which is common in home care – the logbook method may produce a larger deduction. Speak with a registered tax agent about which approach is right for your situation.

Under the cents per kilometre method, the rate covers all vehicle running costs including fuel, registration, insurance, maintenance, repairs and depreciation. You cannot claim any of these costs separately if you are using this method.

What Records You Need

You do not need fuel receipts for the cents per kilometre method. You do need a record showing how you calculated your work-related kilometres. A contemporaneous mileage log – one kept throughout the year, not reconstructed at the end – is the standard approach and is what the ATO will look for if your return is reviewed.

2. Uniforms and Personal Protective Equipment

Clothing and equipment required for your role that is not suitable for everyday wear is deductible. For support workers and aged care workers, this typically includes:

• Scrubs and nursing uniforms
• Non-slip work shoes required by your employer
• Disposable gloves, masks, aprons and other PPE
• Lanyards and ID holders required for your role

Clothing must not be reimbursed by your employer to be deductible. Keep receipts.

Ordinary clothing – including black pants, plain white shirts or sneakers – is generally not deductible even if worn to work, unless it carries a company logo or meets the definition of a distinctive uniform.

3. Training and Professional Development

Training and professional development expenses are deductible if they are directly related to your current role. For support workers and aged care workers, this includes:

• Course fees for the Certificate III in Individual Support or Certificate IV in Disability (if you are currently working in the sector)
• Mandatory training such as manual handling, infection control or medication administration (if not reimbursed by your employer)
• First aid and CPR certification fees (if not reimbursed)
• Professional memberships and subscriptions related to your work
• Books, workbooks and online learning materials for work-related study
• Travel to training (using the cents per kilometre rate)

Training that qualifies you for a new career or a different type of work is generally not deductible. The training must relate to your current role.

4. Union and Professional Association Fees

If you pay fees to a union or professional association – such as the United Workers Union, the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation, or another relevant body – those fees are fully deductible.

This is one of the most consistently overlooked deductions in the aged care and support workforce. Many workers pay union fees via payroll or direct debit and never think to include them in their return. Check your records and claim them.

5. Phone Expenses

If you use your personal mobile phone for work – making calls to clients, their families or your employer, using rostering apps, messaging about client care, or accessing work-related documents – you can claim the work-use portion of your phone expenses.

To calculate your work-use percentage, the ATO recommends keeping a diary of your phone use for one representative four-week period. Record every call and use, note whether it was work or personal, and calculate the percentage. You then apply that percentage to your annual phone bill.

If your employer pays for your phone entirely, you cannot claim this deduction.

The Financial Year vs Calendar Year Problem – and How to Solve It

Why This Catches Support Workers Out

The ATO's financial year runs from 1 July to 30 June. Most diaries and planners run January to December. This means that a standard diary captures data across two financial years – and workers who only keep records in their diary can find themselves with records split across two different books at tax time.

The Simple Solution

If you keep a consistent mileage log and expenses record in a diary, the calculation across two years is straightforward:

For your 2026–27 tax return (July 2026 – June 2027): Add your km from July–December 2026 to your km from January–June 2027.

For your 2027–28 tax return (July 2027 – June 2028): Add your km from July–December 2027 to your km from January–June 2028.

The Support Worker Diary 2027 includes a dedicated Annual Tax Summary page with fields for exactly this calculation – so at the end of the year you have a single page to hand your tax agent or enter into myTax, rather than two diaries and a calculator.

What Records Does the ATO Actually Require?

For the Cents Per Kilometre Method

• A record of how you calculated your work-related kilometres (a mileage log is standard)
• No fuel receipts required

For Work Expenses

• Receipts or invoices for individual expenses over $300
• For expenses under $300, you still need to be able to show the expense was work-related, but a bank statement or diary entry may suffice
• Records must be kept for five years after you lodge your return

For Phone Expenses

• A representative four-week diary of your phone use showing work vs personal use
• Your phone bills for the year

What If You're Reviewed?

If the ATO reviews your return, they will ask to see your records. Contemporaneous records – created at the time, not reconstructed – are far more credible than memory-based estimates. A mileage log kept throughout the year, with dates, start and end odometer readings, destinations and purposes, is exactly what an ATO reviewer is looking for.

Start Now – Not in June

The single biggest mistake support workers make with their tax deductions is treating tax time as the moment to start thinking about it. By June, you have forgotten the training you attended in February, the uniform you bought in March and the kilometres you drove in April.

The only system that works is one you use every day. A mileage entry takes thirty seconds at the end of a shift. An expense note takes fifteen. Done consistently throughout the year, these small habits produce a complete record that saves you hundreds – often thousands – of dollars at tax time.

The Support Worker Diary 2027 includes monthly mileage logs, a running work expenses ledger, an ATO reference page and an annual tax summary – all designed to make the record-keeping part of your daily professional routine rather than a June stress event.

The information in this article is general in nature and does not constitute financial or tax advice. Every worker's situation is different. Always consult a registered tax agent or financial adviser before making decisions about your tax return.