How Do Tax Deductions Work?

Hello guys, I work in IT and I see my colleagues spending money on IT tech and say “I will claim it on tax”, although none of them have the answer to how much will they get back. To me it seems kind of silly upgrading your processor just to get a bigger tax return. I mean you are spending money in the first place to get it back. If I spend $300 and claim it on tax, do I get all the $300 back or portion of it?

Thanks

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Australian Taxation Office
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Comments

  • -1

    Google

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    • +2

      Gotta say I agree with you, how is it that people don't know the absolute basics of tax.

      No, you do not get $300 back if you spend $300, it simply lowers your taxable income by $300, assuming it is something that is an actual tax deduction.

  • +1

    The amount (eg.$300) would be decucted from their taxable income - which means they pay tax on $300 less = maybe 26% (or whatever their tax bracket) - so, they save ~ $78 by paying $78 less tax. Make sense??

    • Yes, thank you so much

  • For IT tech you also won't be allowed to claim it all up front in year one. It will be phased over a number of years depending on what it is. Check ATO. i.e you can't claim $300 this year instead you will claim a 100 reduction in income a year over 3 years.

    • I was under the impression that if under $300 you don’t need to depreciate. Thanks for the clarification

      • You are correct, under $300 per receipt you don't have to depreciate.

        Gets interesting when my dad buys a new computer and pays for each thing separate.

        • Correct me if I'm wrong, but technically, whether his buying/paying for each item separably doesn't really matter when its items that "forms a set" eg you're not going to use the RAM on it's own, or the pc tower on it's own. I suppose there are some grey area to it like if a computer park of a work computers failed and you're just replacing that item.

  • If I spend 300$ and claim it on tax, do I get all the 300$ back or portion of it?

    In this country the dollar sign goes at the start of the amount.

    In this example,spending $300 will mean you get a $300 tax deduction, so you basically get the tax PAID on that $300 you earned, so if you're paying 30% tax, then you'll get back $90.

    I see my colleagues spending money on IT tech and say “I will claim it on tax”

    Just them trying to justify the purchase.

    • I thought OP was using '$' as
      an abbreviation for "dollars"

      I often use "$$" for the same:

      "I save $$ by buying in bulk"

      (dollars or money, same idea)

      Despite a lots of support groups
      (in Adelaide, at least) for OCD,
      I think we can be more Flexible
      in this country

      Australia needs more Canada, IMO ;~)

      • +5

        Are you typing on a 4 inch screen?

      • +3

        Good luck with your treatment.

      • +1

        I thought OP was using '$' as an abbreviation for "dollars"

        Nope, 300$ isn't abbreviation for 300 dollars in this country, that would be $300

        "I save $$ by buying in bulk"

        and thats valid, but saying "I save 300$$ by buying in bulk" or "I save 300$ by buying in bulk" isn't, but "I save $300 by buying in bulk" is.

        I think we can be more Flexible in this country

        No, we walk on the left side, drive on the left side (most people haven't linked those two yet), and the dollar sign goes on the left side of the number.

        Deal with it.

  • Don't forget cashback, points, codes, vouchers, gift cards, etc. The one could be looking at much more than just the 30% tax.

    • +1

      could be looking at much more than just the 30% tax.

      ok then, equal to 32% TAX back….. The point is, its not 100% cost of item back like people think, its the TAX paid on those earning back.

  • upgrading your processor just to get a bigger tax return

    That doesn't sound like a valid deduction. The deduction is required to be a requirement of your job, and it's not unusual for the ATO to call your employer to verify if that is actually the case. Trying to deduct a top-of-the-line processor would result in penalties being applied against you for nearly every single profession in IT.

    I'm sure people will respond stating "oh, it's worth the risk" - but keep in mind that the penalties are quite steep, and getting caught once will result increased audits (which are very time-consuming) over your lifetime.

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