Tools, protective gear and the driving between sites are the big three for tradies. Here is what the ATO actually lets you claim, and the ute rule that catches most people out.
Checked against the ATO tradesperson guide, updated 11 May 2026
Tools you buy for work are deductible, and so are repairs and insurance on them. Anything costing $300 or less comes off in full the year you buy it; over $300 you claim the decline in value over several years. A set counts as one item, so a $500 socket set is a $500 item. You cannot claim anything your employer supplied or paid for. Claimable: tools you bought yourself plus repairs and insurance; steel-capped boots, safety glasses and fire-resistant gear; sunscreen, sunhats and sunglasses for outdoor work; renewing a licence, permit, card or certificate for the job. Not claimable: employer-supplied tools; drill shorts, jeans and plain shirts; your driver’s licence, fines and gym memberships; music subscriptions and childcare.
If your vehicle is built to carry a load of one tonne or more, or nine or more passengers, you cannot use the cents per km method or the logbook method at all. Plenty of dual-cab utes fall over that one tonne line. For those vehicles you claim the actual work-related running costs instead, which means keeping fuel, servicing and insurance receipts. Under the tonne the normal rules apply: cents per km up to 5,000 work kilometres, or a logbook for bigger claims.
The regular run from home to your usual site is private, no matter how early the start. What counts: driving straight from one job to another on the same day, moving between work sites for the same employer, and going from home directly to an alternative workplace such as a training venue. Two exceptions favour tradies: shifting places of employment, where you have no fixed site and travel between jobs all day; and carrying bulky tools, but only if the gear is essential, genuinely awkward to move without a vehicle, and there is nowhere secure to leave it on site.
Protective clothing is claimable because it protects you: steel-caps, safety glasses, high-vis, fire-resistant gear. Ordinary work clothes are not, even if the boss insists on them. Overtime meals count only when your employer paid you an overtime meal allowance under an award or agreement and that allowance is in your assessable income. Phone and internet are claimable for the work-related share, with records showing the split.
Where Nomo fits: Nomo tracks the drives between sites automatically and reads a Bunnings or Total Tools receipt in about two seconds, filing it under the right ATO category.
General information only, not tax advice. Rules change and everyone’s situation is different, so check ato.gov.au or talk to a registered tax agent before you lodge. Nomo is a record keeping tool and does not lodge returns.