it’s in everyone’s best interests to try to minimise their tax, and claiming tax on your vehicle is one of the ways we can do this – provided you meet the requirements. most people want to try and claim their car expenses for work, but they’re unsure of how to do it. fear not, because today we’re going to unlock some of the secrets to claiming car expenses on tax, rule out what you can’t claim tax on and generally guide you through maximising your tax claim on your vehicle.

 

who can claim tax on their vehicle?

many australians can claim tax on their vehicle. if you use your own car for work purposes, then you can claim tax on your vehicle. this includes if you’re paying off a car or leasing a car. it also includes if you’re a business owner and have bought a vehicle for your business.

what you can claim

if you use your own car for work purposes, you can claim the portion of running expenses which are used for work. these include:

  • petrol and oil – however much you use for work
  • rego
  • servicing and repair costs
  • car insurance
  • cost of any damage you’ve caused to another vehicle in an accident
  • interest on your car loan
  • lease payments 
  • depreciation – the decline in value of your car as it gets older

if you’re a business owner, you can also claim the costs listed above for any additional vehicles that you provide to staff as part of their employment.

what you can’t claim

australia is pretty generous when it comes to vehicle expenses being claimed on tax, but that doesn’t mean you can go and claim things, willy-nilly. everyone knows that doing so can get you in trouble, so here are some of the things you can’t claim on tax.

  • the purchase price of your car unless you are running a business and you claim a deduction under the instant asset write-off scheme 
  • any car expenses that you have salary sacrificed
  • any car expenses that have been reimbursed to you by your employer, and
  • the cost of any private (i.e. non work-related) travel that you may do in your vehicle.
  • some modifications, like that fully-sick body kit you got the other day


there’s one last secret to handling your tax claim on your vehicle. maximising your tax claim can be tricky if you’re not going through an expert car finance team like fingo. we’re australia’s experts in car finance, helping you with all the necessary vehicle deductions to minimise your tax. we can also help you with buying, selling, trading or leasing a car and can use their connections with over 2,000 car dealerships across australia to get you a fair  deal. if you’re talking cars, talk with us!

Fingo Finance