Regardless of whether you’re a chef, kitchen hand or barista, every profession has its nuances.

Bakery staff and hospitality workers will have access to a range of occupation-specific tax deductions that can make a big difference to your bottom line. Under-claiming can leave you paying more tax while over-claiming can land you in hot water. The key to lodging is knowing what you can and can’t claim when it comes to tax time. Here’s how bakery staff and hospitality workers can make the most of their tax deductions:

Hospitality deductions

To claim a hospitality related tax deduction, you need to have purchased something that is directly related to your job and helps you earn an income. You must have spent your own money and you must not have been reimbursed by your employer. You’ll also need to keep a record of the purchase. If the item you bought is for both work and private use, you’ll need to prove what portion is used for work and apportion your claim accordingly.

Meal expenses

Even though you’re surrounded by food in your bakery or hospitality job, you can’t claim the cost of your meals during your working day. While you may think you’re sampling the menu, the ATO classifies your workday meals as a private expense even if you receive a meal allowance.

If you work overtime during a long shift or function, you may be given an overtime meal allowance to cover the cost of meals. You can claim the cost of these meals without written evidence providing the meal is within a reasonable rate ($37.65 for the 2024/25 year). If your claim is outside this reasonable rate, you’ll need written evidence to back up your claim.

What you can’t claim

If you visit other restaurants, cafes and bakeries to pick up tips on recipes and generally assess the state of the competition, you might regard that as “market research” but the ATO simply regards it as private expenditure. You can’t claim a deduction for these costs.

Car expenses

Claiming personal car expenses for work purposes can quickly become complicated. While you can’t claim your commute between home and work, you can claim a deduction if you use your personal car to make deliveries or pick up specific equipment between venues.

If you work in hospitality and have more than one job, you can claim the cost of transport between jobs as long as it’s a separate workplace and you don’t work from home. If you need to use your personal vehicle to carry bulky tools and equipment which can’t be securely stored at work, you can claim your commute to and from work.

When it comes to claiming car expenses, there are two ways you can work out how much you can claim: per kilometre and the logbook method. Using the cents per kilometre method, you can claim up to 5,000km of work travel without needing receipts or written evidence. You simply claim 88 cents for each work kilometre travelled. You will however need to keep a diary of work-related travel so you can easily tally up your total work-related journeys for the year. If you opt for the logbook method, you’ll need to keep a logbook for at least 12 continuous weeks and record your odometer readings every year you use this method.

What you can’t claim

Regardless of whether you did minor tasks like picking up the mail or dropping a parcel off on the way to work, you can’t claim a deduction for your regular commute between home and work.

Clothing expenses

If you have to wear a compulsory uniform to work, you’re entitled to claim a deduction for the cost of buying, renting, repairing and cleaning your uniform. You may also be eligible to claim a deduction for the costs of laundering or dry cleaning your compulsory work uniform.

If your claim for laundry expenses is under $150, you don’t need to keep or provide receipts. The ATO is cracking down on over-claiming, so you’ll need to be able to show how you calculate your claim.

If your laundry claim is more than $150, you can still claim but would need to show records such as receipts. You can also show other written evidence of your expenses such as a diary record of your laundromat costs.

What you can’t claim

Even if you’re required to dress up for work, if the items aren’t compulsory or branded with a company logo, you can’t claim a deduction for the cost of purchasing a uniform. Work clothing that’s not enforced in a company policy or compulsory uniform is considered conventional clothing and can’t be claimed. Conventional clothing may include:

• Plain black pants and white shirts
• Comfortable footwear such as running shoes
• Hairdressing, cosmetics or hair styling products

Self-education expenses

If you’re taking a course or upskilling within your current job, you can claim a deduction for self-education expenses if you paid for it personally and weren’t reimbursed by your employer. Self-education could be a short course, seminar or diploma, but to claim the cost of it, the learning must improve your skills or result in an increase in income.

What you can’t claim

If what you’re studying is unrelated to your current role or industry, you can’t claim a deduction. To claim self-education expenses, you need to be studying something that helps improve your current job and doesn’t enable you to get a new job in a different industry or a better job in the current industry.

Tools and equipment expenses

If you’ve bought tools and equipment which you use for work and paid for personally without being reimbursed by your employer, you’re entitled to claim a deduction.

You may also be able to claim a capital deduction or depreciation on the equipment. If the cost of the tools or equipment cost less than $300, you can claim a deduction upfront on the entire amount. If it cost more than $300, you’ll need to claim depreciation over a few years.

What you can’t claim

You can’t claim tools and equipment expenses if the items have been paid for by your employer. You also can’t claim equipment repairs if you’ve been reimbursed for the costs. The ATO is cracking down on bogus claims, so be careful claiming deductions for items which are for personal use.

Other items you can claim

• Phone expenses: You’re entitled to claim a deduction for the cost of work-related calls.
• Gaming licence: If you need a gaming or special responsible service of alcohol licence, you can claim the cost of renewing your licence, but not the original cost of getting it.
• Hiring equipment: If you need to hire equipment specifically for work, you can claim these costs.
• Technical or professional publications: If you subscribe to magazines or journals which are directly related to your job in hospitality, you can claim these costs.
• Union and professional association fees: You can claim these costs.

Get help

It pays to get professional help from an experienced tax accountant, such as H&R Block, as they know the ins and outs of chef and hospitality worker specific exemptions, allowances and tax deductions. You’ll be guaranteed to have maximised all legitimate claims and this should lead to a bigger refund.