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myTax 2020 Interest deductions

How to claim interest deductions when you lodge your return using myTax.

Last updated 31 May 2020

Complete this section if you incurred expenses in earning any assessable interest income.

Things to know

Your expenses may include:

  • bank or other financial institution account-keeping fees for accounts held for investment purposes
  • management fees and fees for investment advice relating to changes in the mix of your investments
  • interest you paid on money you borrowed to purchase income-producing investments.

If you borrowed money to purchase assets for your private use and income-producing investments, you can only claim the portion of the interest expenses relating to the income-producing investments.

You can claim part of the decline in value of your computer based on the percentage of your total computer use that related to managing your interest-earning investments, shares or similar securities. You can only claim part of the decline in value related to managing those investments once, in either Interest deductions or Dividend deductions.

If you incurred particular types of expenses, such as interest on borrowed money, relating to certain overseas investments (or investments in Australia if you were a foreign resident), your claims may be affected by the thin capitalisation rules. These rules may apply if the total of your debt deductions and those of your associates is more than $2 million for 2019–20. For more information, see Thin capitalisation - how the rules work.

Do not show at this section

Do not show the following types of interest expenses at this section:

Completing this section

You will need your bank or financial institution statements or passbooks.

We pre-fill your tax return with interest deductions information you uploaded from myDeductions. Check them, and add any other interest deductions that have not pre-filled.

To personalise your return to show interest deductions, at Personalise return, select:

  • You had deductions you want to claim
  • Gifts, donations, interest, dividends, and the cost of managing your tax affairs

To show your interest deductions, at Prepare return select 'Add/Edit' at the Deductions banner

At the Interest deductions banner:

  1. For each interest deduction expense, select Add and enter information into the corresponding fields.

    Joint accounts
    If you had joint accounts or other interest-earning investments, only show your share of the joint expenses. If you held the investment equally with one other person, this will be half. Keep a record of how you worked out your part if you didn’t share the expenses equally.

    The Depreciation and capital allowances tool can help you work out any decline in value deduction. It can also work out any deductible balancing adjustment when you stop holding a depreciating asset. Access this tool in the Deductions section.
    Fields from this tool can't be adjusted in myTax. To make any adjustments, or to add new assets to the tool, select the 'Use the depreciation and capital allowances tool' link.
  2. Select Save.
  3. Select Save and continue when you have completed the Deductions section.

See also

QC61952