From 1 July 2022, the methods for claiming working from home expenses have changed. The 80 cents per hour COVID-19 shortcut method is not available from 1 July 2022.
The ATO has published Draft PCG 2022/D4 Claiming a deduction for additional running expenses incurred while working from home – ATO compliance approach which outlines its proposed changes to the fixed rate method.
The rate is increasing from 52 cents to 67 cents per hour. In addition to heating, lighting and cleaning costs, the revised method now also includes expenses related to:
- home and/or mobile phone and internet, and
- computer consumables and stationery.
Taxpayers now do not need to have a separate home office or dedicated work area set aside in their home to use the revised 67 cents per hour fixed rate method.
Record keeping requirements
For the 2022–23 income year only, you need to keep:
- a record which is representative of the total number of hours worked from home during the period from 1 July 2022 to 31 December 2022, and
- a record of the total number of actual hours you worked from home for the period 1 January 2023 to 30 June 2023.
For the 2023–24 and later income years, you must keep a record for the entire income year of the number of hours you worked from home during that income year. An estimate for the entire income year or an estimate based on the number of hours you work from home during a particular period and applied to the rest of the income year will not be accepted.
A record of your hours for the income year can be in the form of:
- timesheets
- rosters
- a diary or similar document kept contemporaneously.