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Tax Deductions for Nurses in Australia: The Complete 2024 Guide

👉 Trinity Accounting Practice
✅ Accounting Firm in Beverly Hills
☎️ 02 9543 6804
📍 159 Stoney Creek Road Beverly Hills NSW 2209
🌐 www.trinitygroup.com.au
📅 Weekend & after-hours appointments available!
📅 Booking Link: https://calendly.com/ramy-hanna

Introduction: Nurses Deserve More Than Just Thanks—They Deserve Tax Relief

As a nurse, you're constantly on your feet—working long shifts, facing high pressure, and making critical decisions. But when tax time rolls around, many nurses in Australia miss out on hundreds (or even thousands) in deductions simply because they don’t know what they can legally claim.

This guide is written specifically for you. Whether you're a registered nurse, enrolled nurse, midwife, aged care nurse, or community support worker—if you're in healthcare, this tax guide is for you.

1. Uniforms and Laundry Deductions

If your job requires specific clothing or protective wear, you're likely eligible to claim some of the costs involved.

What You Can Claim:

• Scrubs or hospital-specific uniforms
• Branded or logo-specific healthcare wear
• Non-slip nursing shoes or safety footwear
• Laundry expenses for eligible uniforms (home wash or laundromat)
• Protective clothing like gloves, aprons, and PPE

🚫 You can’t claim everyday clothing, even if you only wear it at work.

2. Registration, Certifications & CPD Costs

Nurses must stay certified to practise. These costs are directly linked to your employment and are deductible.

Claimable Items:

• AHPRA registration fees
• CPR or First Aid certification renewals
• Mandatory immunisations (if not employer-funded)
• Continuing Professional Development (CPD) course fees
• Specialist skill courses like IV cannulation, wound care, etc.
• Textbooks and study materials

If you're studying something unrelated to your current nursing role (e.g. a course to change industries), that is not deductible.

3. Tools of the Trade

Nursing often requires the purchase of specialised tools or equipment. You can claim any item you’ve paid for that is necessary for your job.

Examples:

• Stethoscopes
• Fob watches
• Medical scissors
• Pens and stationery
• Pouches or belt clips
• Manual blood pressure cuffs
• Personal hand sanitiser or disinfectant wipes

📌 For items over $300, depreciation rules apply.

4. Professional Memberships and Union Fees

If you’re a member of a nursing union or healthcare association, those costs can be deducted.

Deductible Fees Include:

• Australian Nursing & Midwifery Federation (ANMF)
• Health Services Union (HSU)
• Other state-based or specialist nursing bodies
• Liability insurance premiums (if self-funded)

5. Mobile Phone and Internet Usage

Do you use your personal phone for shift communication, contacting patients, or rostering?

You May Claim:

• A percentage of your monthly phone bill
• Work-related apps and software
• Internet usage for accessing online rosters or training

📝 Keep a 4-week diary to estimate work-related usage and apply that percentage to your annual bills.

6. Travel Between Sites and Work Locations

You can’t claim your regular commute from home to your main workplace—but if you travel between sites or visit patients, you’re entitled to deductions.

Claimable Travel Expenses:

• Kilometre allowance (up to 5,000km/year)
• Car maintenance (if using the logbook method)
• Tolls and parking
• Public transport or ride-share between shifts

Maintain a logbook for 12 weeks to claim actual expenses, or use the cents-per-kilometre method.

7. Work From Home Claims

If you complete training, update records, or check rosters from home, you may claim a portion of your home office costs.

Claim Options:

• Fixed rate: 67c/hour (covers electricity, phone, internet)
• Actual method: Claim based on real usage and bills

If you set up a desk, laptop, and chair specifically for work use, you may also be eligible to claim depreciation on those items.

8. Self-Education That Helps Your Career

If you’re studying a course that directly relates to your current role (not a new occupation), you may be eligible for deductions.

Deductible Education Costs:

• Nursing short courses
• Postgraduate study in nursing
• CPD modules
• Course materials and printing
• Travel to attend training or workshops
• Stationery and internet for online learning

📌 Your education must help you improve in your current job to qualify.

9. First Aid & Health Essentials

Nurses often supply their own health and safety tools. While some PPE is provided, items you purchase out-of-pocket may be claimable.

Potential Deductions:

• Sunscreen (for community nurses working outdoors)
• Personal face masks
• Hand sanitiser
• Eye protection
• Safety footwear
• Medical gloves (if self-purchased)

Again, only items not reimbursed by your employer can be claimed.

10. Items Nurses Often Can’t Claim

Avoid common mistakes by knowing what the ATO doesn’t allow:

🚫 Regular clothes or shoes (even if only worn at work)
🚫 Commuting from home to hospital
🚫 Meals or snacks at work
🚫 Childcare while you’re on shift
🚫 Gym memberships (unless mandatory for your job)

11. Case Study – Sarah the RN

Sarah works in both public and private hospitals and takes on weekend agency shifts.

What she claimed with our help:✅ Uniform and laundry expenses
✅ Fob watch and stethoscope
✅ 3,800 km of car travel (between hospitals)
✅ CPD courses and webinars
✅ Internet and phone use (based on diary)
✅ Nursing union fees

💰 Sarah received an additional refund of $2,470 compared to the year before we helped her.

12. Record-Keeping Tips

💼 Save every tax invoice and receipt—digitally is fine.
📔 Keep a work-related logbook for car or home office use.
📅 Retain course outlines and certificates for self-education.
📎 Store your AHPRA registration and union receipts.
💻 Use software like Xero to keep it all in one place (we can help set it up!).

You must keep records for five years in case the ATO requests them.

13. How Trinity Accounting Practice Helps Nurses

We support nurses across all states with:

✅ Individual tax returns
✅ BAS for contractors
✅ Super and TFN support
✅ Deductions checklist for every nursing role
✅ Fast, online document upload
✅ Weekend and after-hours support

Book Your Tax Session Today

👉 Trinity Accounting Practice
✅ Accounting Firm in Beverly Hills
☎️ 02 9543 6804
📍 159 Stoney Creek Road Beverly Hills NSW 2209
🌐 www.trinitygroup.com.au
📅 Booking Link: https://calendly.com/ramy-hanna

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