Gifts
You can't claim a deduction for the cost of gifts such as flowers or alcohol for fellow performers, producers or directors. These are private expenses.
Glasses, contact lenses and anti-glare glasses
You can't claim a deduction for prescription glasses or contact lenses, even if you need to wear them while working. These are private expenses.
You can claim a deduction for the cost of tinted contact lenses to alter eye colour or special spectacle frames if it's required for a role.
You can claim a deduction for the cost of protective glasses if you wear them to reduce the real and likely risk of illness or injury while working as an employee performing artist. Protective glasses include anti-glare or photochromatic glasses, sunglasses, safety glasses or goggles.
You can only claim a deduction for the work-related use of the item.
Example: safety glasses
Mark is employed as a fire eater with the circus. Mark buys a pair of safety glasses to wear while practicing and performing. The glasses cost Mark $89 and he wasn't reimbursed by his employer for the cost.
Mark can claim a deduction of $89 for the safety glasses. Mark's employment duties expose him to the real and likely risk of an eye injury and the safety glasses protect his eyes from that risk.
End of exampleGrooming expenses
You can claim a deduction for the cost of:
- a particular hairstyle if it's required for a role
- hairdressing specifically to maintain a required hair length or style as part of a costume for continuity purposes
- stage makeup, including the cost of cleansing materials for removing stage makeup.
You can't claim a deduction for hairdressing, cosmetics, hair and skin care products not relating to your role or costume, even though:
- you receive an allowance for grooming
- your employer expects you to be well groomed when at work.
All grooming expenses and products not relating to your role or costume are private expenses.
Example: grooming costs for a role
Benji is an actor and is shooting a movie. He is required to grow his hair and dye it dark brown for the movie. Benji is particular about his hairdresser and won't use the hairdresser provided by his employer. He pays for his personal hairdresser to cut and dye his hair according to the movie specifications. Benji's employer doesn't reimburse him.
He can claim the costs of his hairdresser as the hairdressing is particular to his role.
End of example
Example: non-essential grooming costs
Kate is a singer who performs on weekends at local restaurants. Kate likes to look professional and pays a professional makeup artist before each performance. She also gets a spray tan each fortnight.
Kate can't claim a deduction for these expenses, they are private expenses that are not essential to her employment duties.
End of exampleLaundry and maintenance
You can claim a deduction for the costs you incur to wash, dry and iron clothing you wear at work if it's:
- protective – for example, fire resistant clothing
- occupation specific and not a conventional, everyday piece of clothing such as jeans or general business attire
- deductible conventional clothing, such as a costume for a particular role
- a uniform either non-compulsory and registered by your employer on the Register of Approved Occupational Clothing or compulsory.
This also includes laundromat and dry-cleaning expenses.
To work out your laundry expenses, you can claim a rate of:
- $1 per load if it only contains clothing you wear at work from one of the categories above
- 50c per load if you mix personal items of clothing with work clothing from one of the categories above.
You can claim the actual costs you incurred for repairing and dry-cleaning expenses.
If your laundry claim (excluding dry-cleaning expenses) is $150 or less, you don't need to keep records but you will still need to calculate and be able to show how you worked out your claim. This isn't an automatic deduction.
Example: laundry expenses
Laura is employed by a circus as a juggler. When she performs, Laura juggles batons which are set on fire. To protect her body while she is performing, she wears fire-resistant clothing.
To ensure the fire-resistant qualities of her clothing are maintained, Laura washes them in a separate load. During the income year, she works for 40 weeks during the year and washes her clothing 4 times per week.
Laura works out her deduction of $120 for laundry expenses as follows:
Number of claimable laundry loads per week × number of weeks = total number of claimable laundry loads
3 × 40 = 120
Total number of claimable laundry loads × reasonable cost per load = total claim amount
120 × $1 = $120
As Laura's total claim for laundry expenses is under $150 ($120), she doesn't have to provide written evidence of her laundry expenses. Although Laura doesn't require evidence to prove her claim for laundry, if asked, she will need to show how she works out her claim.
End of exampleMeal and snack expenses
You can't claim a deduction for the cost of food, drink or snacks you consume during your normal working hours, even if you receive a meal allowance. These are private expenses.
You can claim:
- overtime meal expenses, but only if you buy and eat the meal while you are performing overtime and you receive an overtime meal allowance under an industrial law, award or agreement
- the cost of meals you incur when you are travelling overnight for the purpose of carrying out your employment duties (travel expenses).
Example: meal while working
Valerie is a dancer at a casino. Valerie is required to work 6 days a week from 3:00 pm to 10:00 pm. On a normal day, Valerie:
- attends rehearsal with the other dancers until 5:00 pm
- meets with the director and music director to discuss any issues until 5:30 pm
- has a meal break for 45 minutes when she buys and eats a light meal
- gets her hair and makeup done
- performs from 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm
- warms down
- changes out of her costume and gets her makeup removed.
The meal that Valerie buys and eats on her meal break isn't deductible. It is a private expense.
End of exampleMultimedia
You can claim a deduction for the work-related part of the cost of multimedia, if it directly relates to your current employment as an employee performing artist. For example, you can claim a deduction for downloading music files used for rehearsals.
Newspapers and other news services, magazines and professional publications
The cost of newspapers, other news services and magazines are generally private expenses and not deductible.
You can claim a deduction for the cost of buying or subscribing to a professional publication, newspaper, news service or magazine if you can show:
- a direct connection between your specific work duties and the content
- the content is specific to your employment and is not general in nature.
If you use the publication for work and private purposes, you can only claim the portion related to your work-related use.
Overtime meal expenses
You can claim a deduction for the cost of a meal you buy and eat when you work overtime, if all of the following apply:
- you receive an overtime meal allowance under an industrial law, award or agreement
- the allowance is on your income statement or payment summary as a separate allowance
- you include the allowance in your tax return as income.
You can't claim a deduction if the allowance is not shown as a separate allowance on your income statement or payment summary.
You generally need to get and keep written evidence, such as receipts, when you claim a deduction. However, each year we set an amount you can claim for overtime meal expenses without receipts. This is called the 'reasonable amount'. If you receive an overtime meal allowance, are claiming a deduction and spent:
- up to the reasonable amount, you don't have to get and keep receipts
- more than the reasonable amount, you must get and keep receipts for all your expenses.
In all cases, you need to be able to show you spent the money and how you worked out your claim.
Example: overtime meal expenses
Eric is employed by a theme park to perform in its live show. During the income year, Eric has to work overtime to practice new stunts and material for the show on 10 occasions. Eric is paid an overtime meal allowance of $14.62 on each occasion he works overtime.
Each time he worked overtime, Eric spent $18.50 on a meal. This is less than the reasonable amount for the relevant income year.
At the end of the income year, Eric's income statement shows he received an overtime meal allowance of $146.20 ($14.62 × 10). Eric declares the allowance as income in his tax return. He also claims a deduction of $185 for the meals he bought. He works this out as:
$18.50 × 10 meals = $185
The amount Eric is claiming as a deduction for each overtime meal is less than the Commissioner's reasonable amount. This means Eric doesn't have to keep written evidence for his overtime meal expenses. However, he will need to be able to show how he works out his deduction and that he spent the money.
End of exampleFor more information, see TD 2025/4 Income tax: reasonable travel and overtime meal allowance expense amounts for the 2025–26 income year.
For more performing artists expenses, see: