Hybrid work has become the norm for millions of Australians. If you split your time between home and the office, you have probably wondered: can I claim the drive from home to the office as a tax deduction on the days I work from home? The answer depends on the specifics of your arrangement, and the ATO draws some clear lines.
The general rule: commuting is not deductible
The ATO’s long-standing position is that travel between your home and your regular place of work — your normal commute — is private travel and cannot be claimed as a tax deduction. This applies regardless of:
- How far you live from the office
- Whether you carry a laptop or work materials in the car
- Whether you check emails or take calls during the drive
- Whether you work from home on other days of the week
Simply working from home part of the week does not automatically turn your office commute into a deductible trip.
When home-to-office travel can be deductible
There are limited circumstances where the ATO allows a deduction for travel from home to a workplace. Understanding these exceptions is crucial for hybrid workers.
Home as a base of operations
If your home is your principal place of business — meaning it is your base of operations and you perform substantive work there — then travel from home to other work locations (including your employer’s office) may be deductible.
For this to apply, you generally need to show:
- You have a dedicated workspace at home set up for work
- You perform a significant portion of your employment duties from home (not just answering occasional emails)
- Your employment arrangement requires or expects you to work from home regularly
- You travel to the office for specific purposes like meetings, collaboration, or tasks that cannot be done remotely
The key test is whether you are travelling between two workplaces rather than commuting from home to your regular workplace.
Itinerant workers
Some employees have no fixed workplace and travel to different locations as part of their job. If you are genuinely itinerant — for example, a consultant who works from home and visits different client sites each day — travel from home to those sites is generally deductible.
However, most hybrid office workers are not itinerant. Having a desk at the office that you use two or three days a week means the office is still a regular place of work.
Travelling between workplaces during the day
If you work from home in the morning, drive to the office for an afternoon meeting, and then return home, the ATO is more likely to view the travel as between two workplaces — provided both locations genuinely function as workplaces.
This is a stronger claim than simply commuting to the office at the start of the day. The ATO looks at the substance of the arrangement, not just the label.
What the ATO looks for
The ATO has flagged work-from-home travel claims as an area of focus. When assessing whether your home is a genuine base of operations, they consider:
- Employment contract — does it specify working-from-home arrangements?
- Work pattern — how many days per week do you work from home versus the office?
- Nature of home work — are you performing core duties, or just catching up on emails?
- Employer expectations — does your employer require or encourage home-based work, or do you simply prefer it?
- Dedicated workspace — do you have a room set aside primarily for work?
If you only work from home occasionally or by personal choice (not employer requirement), the ATO is unlikely to accept your home as a base of operations.
Practical examples
Example 1: Not deductible
Emma works in marketing. She works from home on Mondays and Fridays, and commutes to the office Tuesday to Thursday. Her employer provides a desk and all her tools at the office. She works from home for convenience.
Result: Emma’s drive to the office is a regular commute and not deductible. Working from home by choice does not make her home a base of operations.
Example 2: Potentially deductible
David is a software developer. His employment contract states he works from home four days per week. He has a dedicated home office with monitors, a standing desk, and enterprise software. He drives to the company office one day per week for team stand-ups and code reviews.
Result: David has a strong argument that his home is his base of operations. The one-day-per-week office trip could be deductible as travel between workplaces. He should keep detailed records and seek advice from a tax professional.
Record keeping for hybrid workers
If you believe your home-to-office travel qualifies as a deduction, keep:
- A trip log — date, kilometres, destination, and purpose of each trip
- Employment contract or policy — showing your working-from-home arrangement
- Evidence of your home workspace — photos, internet/phone bills, a floor plan
- Calendar or diary — showing which days you worked from home and which days you travelled to the office
For more on the records the ATO expects, see our ATO motor vehicle record-keeping guide.
Do not confuse car deductions with WFH deductions
The ATO’s working from home deduction (covering electricity, internet, phone, and office supplies) is separate from car expense deductions. You can claim working-from-home costs on the days you work from home without affecting your car expense claim.
However, you cannot claim a car deduction for a trip that the ATO considers a private commute. The two deductions operate independently — qualifying for one does not guarantee the other.
When to seek professional advice
If your situation falls into a grey area — for example, you work from home three days a week and travel to the office two days — it is worth speaking with a registered tax agent. The ATO’s position is nuanced, and what qualifies depends on the specific facts. A tax professional can help you assess the strength of your claim and ensure you are not exposing yourself to penalties.
For an understanding of how audit scrutiny works, see our guide on ATO car expense audit red flags.
Track every trip with Tripbook
Whether your home-to-office travel qualifies or not, keeping an accurate record of every trip is essential. Tripbook runs quietly on your phone, logging each drive automatically. You can classify trips as business or personal with a swipe, giving you a clean record if the ATO ever asks. It also makes it easy to calculate the exact kilometres for any trips that do qualify as a deduction.
