Are You Ready for the Tax Season? Tax Return Tips for Uber Drivers
For many people, Tax Time can be stressful and confusing. Usually consisting of paperwork, complex tax laws and trying to find all of those receipts from the start of the Financial Year. It is vital that your tax return includes all of your incurred income and work-related expenses, to ensure that you not only receive your entitled refund, but to avoid any costly mistakes. At MAS Tax Accountants, we can help you to manage your tax return commitments and provide a hassle-free Tax Season. Using these simple Tax Return Tips for Uber Drivers, you can feel organised and confident with your tax return lodgement.
As the popularity of the Uber App increases, so does the demand for Uber Drivers. If you are an Uber Driver, there is tax-related information that we will need to lodge and certain tax deductions you may be able to claim.
To help you to get the best from your tax refund this year, here are our Tax Return Tips for Uber Drivers:
Income Tax
As an Uber Driver, you will need to include your income earned from the Uber App, as well as the income from any other jobs or sources from throughout the year. For this, you will need your payment summaries or Group Certificate, detailing your income and paid tax amounts from the past 12 months. This includes your weekly Uber payment and sales statements, which notes the gross fare, plus toll, less service fee, plus any incentives.
You can access your tax summary information through your Uber Partner log-in and summaries are available from mid-July.
Deductions
In addition to your income tax, you may be able to claim certain work-related expenses. This could include the work-related proportion of your fuel and car expenses, a work-related percentage of your mobile phone bills and service fees charged by Uber.
To be able to successfully claim these tax deductions, you will need to keep a record of your expenses or a proof of purchase. Maintaining the correct documentation is vital in supporting your tax deductions claims. Misleading or false claims may be penalised by the ATO.
Avoid missing out on valuable tax deductions by keeping a well organised filing system of your records and receipts throughout the year. This can be kept paper-based or electronically. At MAS Tax, we can set you up with the right online bookkeeping software, to help you keep track of your records and input any relevant data.
The typical deductions that you can claim on your tax return, include:
- A proportion of fuel for your car
- Car depreciation and running costs
- Work-related mobile phone bills
- Costs of cleaning, servicing or repairing your vehicle
- Any service fee or other fees you pay to Uber
- A proportion of your Car Insurance
- Accountant/tax agent fees
Claiming your Travel Expenses
As an Uber Driver, your car would be frequently used for work-related purposes. This means that you may be able to claim travel expenses, in addition to the above mentioned car-related deductions.
There are two methods that can be used to claim work-related car expenses:
-
Cents per Litre
Under this method, you will be able to:
- There is a maximum of 5,000 business kilometres per car
- You will not need written evidence, but you need to be able to show how you worked out your business kilometres
-
Vehicle Logbook
If you plan to claim your tax expenses using a Logbook, you will need to keep a detailed Logbook for at least 12 continuous weeks. This information will act as a representation for your car use for the next 5 years. You will need to note each travel time, travel distance and odometer readings, and fuel purchases; as well as the time, distance, odometer and fuel information for the logbook as a whole.
Take the following details into consideration:
- You can only claim the costs of work-related expenses. If you use your car for both business and private reasons, you will only be able to claim a proportion of the car expenses.
- Expenses include running costs and decline in value, but do not include capital costs.
- You can claim fuel and oil costs, using either your actual receipts or an expenses estimation based on odometer logbook records, that show readings from the start and the end of the period you had the car during the year.
- You will need written evidence for all other expenses for the car, such as receipts and invoices.
DOWNLOAD A VEHICLE LOGBOOK –MAS Tax Car Logbook
Find more information for Uber Drivers – GST and Tax Return Deductions for Uber Drivers
At MAS Tax, we can help you to meet all of your tax return commitments. Have a hassle-free Tax Season, by maximising your refund amount and avoiding unnecessary legal or administration troubles. See us today!
For more information or to make an appointment, please contact us below or call us on 1300 627 829
We have many Offices around Australia, find one nearest you.
Sources:
Australian Taxation Office. (2016, 24 May). Car Expenses. Australian Taxation Office. Retrieved from: https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals/income-and-deductions/deductions-you-can-claim/vehicle-and-travel-expenses/car-expenses/
UBER, Domenic. (2015, 22 June). Tax Tips for Uber Driver Partners. Uber Newsroom. Retrieved from: https://newsroom.uber.com/australia/oztaxtips/
