A WEDDING reception, Lego sets and dental care are among the most unusual claims disallowed by the Australian Taxation Office last financial year.
Nearly 700,000 taxpayers claimed almost $2b of ‘other’ expenses, including non-allowable items such as child care, new private vehicles and school fees.
ATO assistant commissioner Karen Foat said a systematic review of claims found and disallowed, several unusual expenses.
“These claims add up to a lot of money. If the deduction is not directly related to earning income, we cannot allow it,” Ms Foat said.
“A couple of taxpayers claimed dental expenses, believing a nice smile was essential to finding a job – and was therefore deductible.
“Another taxpayer claimed the Lego sets they bought as gifts for their children. Unsurprisingly, this claim was disallowed.
“Personal gifts do not qualify and it’s not okay to ask Australian taxpayers to subsidise presents.”
The ATO review found some taxpayers were incorrectly claiming a range of private expenses such as child support payments, private school fees, health insurance costs and medical expenses, all of which are not allowable.
“Where people make genuine mistakes, we simply disallow the claim. But when people are deliberately making dishonest claims, particularly for large sums, we will disallow the claim and may impose a penalty,” Ms Foat said.
In order to claim an ‘other’ deduction, the expenses must be directly related to earning income and requires a receipt or record of the expense.
