Tax deductions for flight attendants and cabin crew
Cabin crew are expected to be well groomed, but the ATO treats almost all grooming costs as private. Make-up and hairdressing cannot be claimed, even with a grooming allowance, yet the shoes and stockings your compulsory uniform policy specifies can be. With meals, it comes down to where you sleep: a layover meal you pay for can be deductible, and a meal on a same-day return usually is not.
This page sets out what you can and cannot claim as a flight attendant or cabin crew member in Australia, checked against the ATO's own occupation guide. Where a rule has a catch in it, we have said so rather than left it out. It is written for employees.
Aevum Accounting is a CPA practice and registered tax agent in Balcatta, Perth, working with flight attendants and cabin crew across Australia.
Before any specific deduction, an expense has to clear all three of these. The ATO calls them the three golden rules.
1. You spent the money yourself and were not reimbursed. If your employer paid for it or paid you back, it is not your deduction.
2. The expense directly relates to earning your income. Not helpful to your career in general. Directly related to the job you are doing now.
3. You have a record to prove it. Usually a receipt.
If an expense was part work and part private, you can only claim the work-related portion. And you cannot claim at all if you have no records, or if someone else paid.
The short version, before the detail. These are the claims worth checking every year.
Usually deductible
Meals you pay for on a layover, when your work requires you to sleep away from home.
Overtime meals, but only with an overtime meal allowance under an award or agreement.
Shoes and stockings your compulsory uniform policy specifies, if you buy them yourself.
Washing and dry-cleaning a compulsory uniform.
Rehydrating moisturiser and rehydrating hair conditioner, in the narrow case the ATO allows.
Luggage, for the work-related use.
Visa application fees, when your job requires you to enter a country.
A food and drink cart shortage you have to cover.
Training for your current role, such as a leadership course.
Tools you use on duty, such as a torch, and the work share of your phone.
Driving between two jobs on the same day, and parking and taxis on work trips.
Union and professional association fees.
Not deductible, however it feels
Make-up, hairdressing, and hair and skin products, even with a grooming allowance.
Your passport, including the renewal.
The drive between home and the airport, even when you are called in from standby.
Parking at the airport you are based at, and getting your luggage there.
Meals on a shift where you get home the same day, unless they are overtime meals.
Hotels and meals your employer provides, such as a meal on the plane.
Stockings, skirts and shoes outside a compulsory uniform, even if you only wear them at work.
Travel insurance and vaccinations.
A watch or smart watch.
Tasting the cheese and wine sold on your flights.
Moving costs when you are transferred to a new base.
Study to become a pilot, or for any other new job.
Each of these is explained properly below.
From the 2026-27 income year, if you are an Australian resident earning a salary or wage, you get a standard deduction of up to $1,000 for work-related expenses. The ATO applies it automatically and you do not need receipts for it. It became law in June 2026 and starts with the 2026-27 return, which you lodge from July 2027. It does not apply to the 2025-26 return you are lodging now.
It is not a bonus on top of your normal claims. Any work-related expenses you claim reduce it dollar for dollar. Claim $600 of expenses and your standard deduction drops to $400, so you land on $1,000 either way, with more paperwork. If your work expenses are more than $1,000, you claim them the way you do now, and you need records for every dollar you claim, not just the part above $1,000. For most expenses, that means written evidence such as receipts.
Union fees and professional association memberships sit outside it. You can claim those on top of the full $1,000, as long as you keep the records.
For flight attendants and cabin crew, it depends on your roster. Uniform shoes, stockings and laundry alone may not reach $1,000. Paying for your own meals on layovers can take you well past it, as Wendy's example below shows. Keep your receipts until you know which side of the line you are on.
Every allowance on your income statement goes in your return as income, but an allowance does not give you a deduction by itself. The ATO says a flying allowance or a foreign language allowance compensates you for an aspect of your work, so there is nothing to claim against it. A meal allowance for work travel, or a first aid certificate allowance, can come with a deduction, but only if you incur deductible expenses.
In the ATO's examples, Marie declares her training allowance as an in-flight trainer and claims nothing, because she has no expenses. Ben, on international flights, declares the meal allowance he gets when his major rest break is away from home, and claims the meals he buys.
A travel allowance that is on your payslip but not your income statement may not need to be declared, as explained below. If you claim the expenses it covers, it goes in as income.
A food and drink cart shortage you must cover is deductible. In the ATO's example, Ray keys in $2.40 instead of $24, and $21.60 is taken out of his pay. He claims $21.60, with his payslip as evidence.
You can claim accommodation, meals and incidentals when your work requires you to travel and sleep away from home overnight, but only what you pay for yourself. A hotel or meal your employer provides, such as a meal on the plane, or anything you are paid back for, is not yours to claim. Nor can you claim if you work several flights and get home the same day.
Food and drink in your normal working hours is private, even with a meal allowance. In the ATO's example, Jasmine, a domestic flight attendant who lives in Brisbane, gets home at the end of each shift, so the meals she buys on her break are private.
Overtime meals are deductible only if you buy and eat the meal while working overtime, you receive a separate overtime meal allowance under an industrial law, award or agreement, not one folded into your salary and wages, and you declare it as income, even if it shows only on your payslips. In the ATO's example, Felicity gets a $20 allowance on 30 overtime shifts and usually spends $15, so she declares $600 and claims $450.
The reasonable amount is $38.65 for 2025-26 and $40 for 2026-27. If your claim is no more than that, you do not need receipts, but you must still be able to show what you spent and how you worked it out.
With a travel allowance, you claim what you actually spent, not the allowance. If the allowance is on your income statement, you declare it. If it is not, does not exceed the ATO's reasonable amount, and you spent all of it on deductible travel costs, you can leave it out, but then you cannot claim those costs.
The ATO sets reasonable amounts each year, and they vary with your salary and where you travel. It is your claim that has to be within the reasonable amount, not your allowance.
If you receive a travel allowance and your claim is within the reasonable amount, you do not need written evidence for your accommodation, meals and incidentals, except overseas accommodation, which always needs it. You must still be able to show you spent the money, for example with a diary of when you were away and how many meals you ate, proof you declared the allowance, and your bank statements. Claim more and you need written evidence for all your travel expenses, not just the part above.
In the ATO's example, Wendy flies from Sydney to Fiji and back the next evening. Her employer provides her hotel, transport and a meal on each flight, and pays her $125 a trip for her other meals and incidentals. Over 25 trips she declares $3,125. She spends $25 on breakfast, $30 on lunch, $50 on dinner and $15 on incidentals each trip, so she claims $3,000. Because she spent less than the reasonable amount, she does not need receipts, but she must be able to show how she worked out her claim.
On overseas trips, you generally need a travel diary if you are away six or more nights in a row, but airline crew do not, if the allowance covers your travel as a crew member, the travel is principally outside Australia, and your claim does not exceed the allowance.
From 2026-27, travel allowance expenses you claim count against the $1,000 standard deduction, and the reasonable amount exception still applies.
Conventional clothing is private, even if your employer requires it, and the ATO says flight attendants do not wear occupation-specific clothing. A claim has to be for a compulsory uniform, a non-compulsory uniform on the Register of Approved Occupational Clothing, or protective clothing. A compulsory uniform is one your employer strictly and consistently enforces, and that distinctly identifies you with that employer.
In the ATO's example, Alex's airline supplies her shirts, skirts and pants, but its uniform policy says her stockings must be Brand X in grey-mist and her shoes black leather court shoes. She buys those herself and can claim them, because they are an integral part of her compulsory uniform.
One distinctive item does not make the rest a uniform. In another ATO example, Karen flies from Perth to mining towns in the Pilbara, and her airline supplies a blue shirt with its logo and name. She can claim washing and maintaining the shirt, but not the navy stockings, skirts, trousers and shoes she wears with it, even though she only wears them at work.
Laundry of claimable clothing can be worked out at $1 a load for work clothing only, or 50 cents a load if you mix in personal items. Dry cleaning and repairs are claimed at actual cost. In the ATO's example, Danielle claims $96 for washing her uniform in a separate load twice a week for 48 weeks, plus $84 for four dry cleans of her blazer at $21.
The ATO is strict about grooming. Hairdressing, cosmetics, and hair and skin products are private, even if you receive a grooming allowance and your employer expects you to be well groomed.
The exception is narrow. You may be able to claim rehydrating moisturiser and rehydrating hair conditioner, to combat the drying effect on your skin and hair, if you work in harsh or abnormal conditions, such as the pressurised environment of a plane, and your job requires you to be well groomed. Both must apply, and you can only claim the work-related portion.
Prescription glasses and contact lenses are private. Protective glasses, including anti-glare glasses and sunglasses, can be claimed for their work use if you wear them to reduce a real and likely risk of illness or injury at work.
Watches are private. In the ATO's example, Bree cannot claim a smart watch she bought to check her phone messages while away on international routes, because that is not part of her duties.
Vaccinations to protect you from infectious diseases in the workplace are a personal medical expense, not a deduction. The ATO's flight attendant guide does not cover medicals, so talk to us before you claim one.
You can claim luggage for its work-related use, such as suitcases, overnight bags and luggage trolleys. If it cost $300 or less, you claim it in the year you buy it. Above $300, you claim its decline in value over its effective life, and if you also use it for private travel, only the work share. In the ATO's example, Jeff claims the full $250 for a suitcase he only uses when he travels away overnight for work.
A passport, or its renewal, is private. Visa application fees are deductible when you must enter a country as part of your job and your employer does not pay you back. Travel insurance is private.
The trip between home and the airport you are based at is private, even if you live a long way away or start early, and so is getting your luggage there. Being on standby does not change that: in the ATO's example, Jenny is called in from standby, and her trip is still private.
You can claim driving directly between two separate jobs on the same day, if neither is your home, and to an alternative workplace, such as a training course. In the ATO's example, Mia can claim her trips from her second job as a yoga instructor straight to the airport.
Parking at or near your regular workplace, and tolls between home and work, are private. Parking, tolls, taxis, ride-share and public transport on work trips are deductible, unless your employer pays you back. In the ATO's example, Bruce cannot claim the staff car park at the airport he is based at, but can claim parking at the training centre he drives to once a month.
Cents per kilometre. 88 cents per kilometre for 2024-25 and 2025-26, and 91 cents for 2026-27, capped at 5,000 work kilometres per car per year. You still need a record of how you worked out the kilometres. The alternative is a 12-week logbook and your actual costs.
Self-education is deductible if it directly relates to your current job and maintains or improves the skills you need for your duties, or is likely to increase your income from that job. It is not deductible if it only relates to your job in a general way, or helps you get a new job. In the ATO's example, Brianna cannot claim the Diploma of Aviation she is studying to become a commercial airline pilot, because it will get her a new job rather than improve her skills as a flight attendant. HECS-HELP fees and study loan repayments are not deductible.
Seminars and training courses that relate to your work are deductible, including registration, fares and, if you stay overnight, accommodation and meals. In the ATO's example, Nelly, promoted to cabin crew supervisor, can claim an Inflight leadership course and incidental costs such as taxi fares or parking. A first aid course is deductible if you are a designated first aid person and need it for emergencies at work, unless your employer pays for it.
Product knowledge is private, such as tasting the cheese and wine sold on your flights, or travelling to destinations on your usual routes.
Phone, data and internet costs are deductible for the work-related use of your own devices. Keep your bills and a record of how you worked out your work use. Calls to family and friends are private, even when you are away.
Tools you use on duty are deductible for the work share, outright if one costs $300 or less and meets the ATO's conditions, otherwise over its effective life. In the ATO's example, Bobby claims the full $130 for a rechargeable torch he uses when the cabin lights are dimmed. Protective items such as ear plugs, safety glasses and gloves count too, if they protect you from a real and likely risk of injury or illness.
Union and professional association fees are deductible. Moving to a new base is not, even when your employer transfers you, and neither are social functions or child care while you work.
For the 2025-26 return you are lodging now: receipts for everything you claim, except where the allowance rules above say otherwise, your income statement and payslips, which show your allowances, kilometre records or a logbook for car claims, and, for layovers, a diary of when you were away with your bank statements. Two shortcuts still apply this year. If your total work-related expenses, other than car, travel and overtime meal allowance claims, are $300 or less, you can claim them without receipts. If your laundry claim, not counting dry cleaning, is $150 or less, you do not need written evidence of it. In both cases you still have to be able to show how you worked out the figure.
From 2026-27, those shortcuts end for everyone. If you claim more than the standard deduction, you need written evidence, such as receipts, for your work-related expenses. Some exceptions continue, including travel allowance and overtime meal allowance claims within the ATO's reasonable amounts, and car claims at cents per kilometre. For those, you still need records that show how you worked out the claim. For laundry worked out at the ATO's per-load rates, its current guidance is to keep a record of how many loads you washed, whether each was a work-only or mixed load, and evidence that you paid for the laundry.
The ATO's myDeductions tool in their app is a reasonable way to keep records through the year. We cannot access it directly, but you can export from it and send it to us. A shared Drive, OneDrive or Dropbox folder works just as well.
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Can I claim make-up, hairdressing or skin care?
No. The ATO treats hairdressing, cosmetics, and hair and skin products as private, even with a grooming allowance. The narrow exception is rehydrating moisturiser and rehydrating hair conditioner, for the work-related portion, where you work in harsh conditions such as a pressurised plane and your job requires you to be well groomed.
Can I claim my uniform shoes and stockings?
Yes, if your employer's compulsory uniform policy specifies them, you buy them yourself, and they are an integral part of the uniform. Conventional items you wear with a supplied shirt, such as navy stockings, skirts or trousers, are private, even if you only wear them at work.
Can I claim meals on a layover?
Yes, if your work requires you to sleep away from home overnight and you pay for the meals yourself. You cannot claim meals your employer provides, such as a meal on the plane, or meals on a shift where you get home the same day.
Can I claim my passport and visas?
Not your passport, including the renewal. The ATO says it primarily relates to your personal right to travel overseas. Visa application fees are deductible when you must enter a country as part of your job and your employer does not pay you back.
How does the $1,000 standard deduction work for flight attendants and cabin crew?
From the 2026-27 return, you get up to $1,000 automatically, with no receipts needed. Any work expenses you claim reduce it, including travel allowance expenses, so it helps most when yours are under $1,000. If they are over, claim them as normal and keep records for every dollar. Your union fees go on top either way.
Do you work with flight attendants and cabin crew outside Perth?
Yes. We are based in Balcatta and we work with clients across Australia, by email or online appointment. See our pricing page for how the two options differ, or book an appointment.
There is no episode of the Aevum Accounting Podcast just for flight attendants and cabin crew, but two are relevant to you. The Thousand Dollar Deduction (episode 54) explains the new standard deduction, and its written companion is The $1,000 Instant Tax Deduction: What It's Actually Worth. Your Tax Return, Your Way: Email or Appointment (episode 51) helps you choose how to lodge with us, and its companion is Email or Appointment.
We are a CPA practice and registered tax agent, TPB registration 26302591. You can check our credentials, meet the team, or book an appointment.
Also worth reading: tax accountants Perth for how we work with individuals, and our guides for pilots and hospitality workers.