Tax deductions for security guards and other security employees
For security guards, a lot of the tax rules come down to small details. Your first security licence is not deductible, but the renewal is. A compulsory polo shirt with your employer's logo can be claimed, but the black pants you wear with it cannot. A guard dog only counts if it is not also the family pet.
This page sets out what you can and cannot claim as a security guard, security officer, cash-in-transit guard or other security employee 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. If you work on your own ABN or run a security business, start with our business consultation instead.
Aevum Accounting is a CPA practice and registered tax agent in Balcatta, Perth, working with security guards 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
Renewing your security licence, permit or card.
A compulsory uniform with your employer's logo, if you paid for it.
Protective items such as a bullet-proof vest or hi-vis vest.
Washing, dry-cleaning and repairing your uniform and protective items.
Firearm costs with a direct connection to your duties, including renewing your gun licence.
Ongoing costs of a guard dog your employer requires you to provide.
A first aid course, if you are a designated first aid person.
Tools and equipment you buy for the job, such as a utility belt.
Sunglasses, sunhats and sunscreen, if you work in the sun for long periods.
Driving between two jobs on the same day, or between venues for the same employer.
Parking and tolls on work trips, unless your employer pays you back.
Overtime meals, but only with an overtime meal allowance under an award or agreement.
Training that relates to your current security work, and union fees.
Not deductible, however it feels
Your first security licence, needed to get the job.
Your drivers licence, even if the job requires it.
Black pants, white shirts and black shoes, even if your employer requires them.
Gym fees, gym clothes and protein shakes.
A dog you keep to protect your home, or one treated as a pet.
The drive from home to your regular site, even when you are called back for an extra shift.
The drive from home as a relief guard who stays at one site for each shift.
Food and drink on a normal shift, even with a meal allowance.
A travel mug or thermos for your coffee.
Prescription glasses and contact lenses.
Haircuts, cosmetics and other grooming.
Fines, even ones you get while working.
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 security guards, it depends on what your employer supplies. If you mostly claim uniform laundry, your work expenses may sit well under $1,000. Firearm costs, a guard dog or a training course can take you past it. 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. With some, such as a torch allowance or one for a first aid certificate, you can claim deductible expenses you pay. Others compensate you for an aspect of the job, such as an aviation or broken shift allowance, and there is nothing to claim against them.
In the ATO's examples, Mark, an airport guard, declares his aviation allowance but cannot claim against it, because it pays him for extra duties, not expenses. Ronaldo, an office building guard, declares his laundry allowance and claims what he spent laundering and repairing his compulsory uniform.
If your employer pays you back the exact amount you spent, that is a reimbursement. You do not declare it and you cannot claim the expense.
You cannot claim the cost of getting your first licence, permit, card or certificate to get a job. You can claim the additional cost to get or renew one you need to keep doing your work. In the ATO's example, William, a trainee security guard on probation, cannot claim his $160 security licence, but can claim the $140 when he renews it the following year.
In WA, from 1 July 2026, the fee to renew a security officer or crowd controller licence for three years is $272.
Your drivers licence is not deductible, even the renewal, and even if the job requires it.
A first aid course is deductible if you are a designated first aid person and need the course to help in emergency situations at work, and your employer does not pay for it. If you need a first aid certificate for your security licence but you are not a designated first aid person, the ATO's guide does not deal with that directly. Talk to us before you claim it.
Everyday clothes are private, even if your employer requires them and you only wear them at work. The ATO's own example is the black pants and white shirt worn by security guards. It says security workers do not wear occupation-specific clothing, so a claim has to be for protective clothing, a compulsory uniform, or a non-compulsory uniform your employer has registered on the Register of Approved Occupational Clothing.
A compulsory uniform must be strictly and consistently enforced, and distinctly identify you as working for your employer. In the ATO's example, Koen can claim the two polo shirts with his employer's logo that he buys, but not his three pairs of plain black pants or two pairs of black enclosed shoes, even though he only wears them at work.
Protective clothing protects you from specific risks of illness or injury at work, such as a bullet-proof vest or hi-vis vest. Jeans, drill shirts, shorts, trousers, socks and closed shoes are not protective enough. The security guide does not mention safety boots, though the ATO's general guidance lists steel-capped boots as protective clothing, so talk to us before you claim them.
Washing 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, Jelani, a prison guard, washes her compulsory uniforms as a separate load twice a week for 48 weeks and claims $96.
Sunglasses, sunhats and sunscreen, including prescription sunglasses, are claimable for their work use if you must work outdoors in the sun for long periods, such as at a music festival, and use them to protect you from a real and likely risk of illness or injury. Ordinary prescription glasses and contact lenses are private, and so are haircuts, cosmetics and other grooming, even if your employer expects you to be well groomed.
Where there is a direct connection to your duties as a guard or security officer, you can claim the decline in value of a firearm, its maintenance, ammunition and renewing your gun licence, unless your employer pays or reimburses you. In the ATO's example, Trang must carry a firearm because of the danger he faces at work. He declares his $750 firearm allowance and claims the decline in value of his $1,200 firearm over its effective life.
Guard dog costs are generally private. You can claim them only if your duties require you to use a guard dog, your employment requires you to provide your own, the dog has been trained as a guard dog from a young age, and it is only for work and not treated as a pet. Then you can claim ongoing costs such as food, vet bills and registration. The purchase price is a capital cost, so you claim the dog's decline in value over its effective life instead. If your employer provides the dog or pays its costs, there is nothing to claim. In the ATO's example, Gabby, a security officer, keeps a German shepherd to protect her at home, so its costs are private. The guide does not mention dog handlers, so if that is your role, talk to us before you claim.
Tools and equipment you buy for your duties, and repairs to them, are claimable for the work share, outright if they cost $300 or less and meet the ATO's conditions, otherwise over their effective life. Items your employer or someone else supplies are not.
In the ATO's examples, Percy claims the full $89 for a utility belt he uses only for work. Olivia, who does overnight security checks at a shopping complex, cannot claim her travel mug and thermos, because items for taking food and drink to work are private.
The trip between home and your regular workplace is private, even if you live a long way away or work early, late or weekend shifts. In the ATO's example, Penelope is called back one evening to cover for a sick colleague, and the trip is still private.
You can claim driving directly between two separate jobs on the same day, as long as neither is your home, such as from a security job to a second job as a bartender. You can also claim driving between different venues for the same employer on the same day.
The ATO gives two limited cases where the trip between home and work can be claimed. One is carrying equipment that is essential to your duties and bulky, when there is no secure storage for it at work and you are not carrying it by choice. The other is shifting places of employment, where you have no fixed place of work and continually travel from one work site to another before returning home. In the ATO's example, Edward, a relief guard called in to cover shifts at different locations, cannot claim the trips from home, because once he reports for duty he stays at that site for the whole shift. If you have a regular site and are sent straight from home to a different one, talk to us before you claim it.
The guide does not mention mobile patrols. The closest rule is driving between venues for the same employer on the same day, but if you patrol in your own car, talk to us before you claim it.
If your employer provides the car, badged or unbadged, you cannot claim car expenses. You can claim fuel you pay for while on duty, if your employer does not pay you back.
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.
Parking at or near your regular workplace, and tolls between home and work, are private. Parking and tolls on work trips are deductible, unless your employer pays you back. Fines are never deductible.
Overnight travel is deductible when your work requires you to sleep away from home, but not a room or meals your employer provides. A travel allowance that is not on your income statement, is within the ATO's reasonable amount and is fully spent on the travel is not declared, and the costs are not claimed.
Food, drink and snacks during your normal working hours are private, even if you receive a meal allowance.
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, Ravi, a security officer, gets a $20 award allowance on 30 overtime occasions, shown as $600 on his income statement, and generally spends $15 on his meal, so he 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.
Fitness costs are private, including gym fees, gym clothing, weight management programs and supplements such as protein shakes, and the ATO's guide gives no exception for security workers. The guide does not mention self-defence or defensive tactics courses, so talk to us before you claim one.
Seminars, conferences and training courses that relate to your work as a guard or security employee are deductible, including fares, registration and, if you stay overnight, accommodation and meals, unless your employer pays. In the ATO's example, Pierre, a cash-in-transit guard who carries a weapon, claims a weapons training course, because using a weapon correctly is an important skill for doing his job safely.
Self-education is deductible if it directly relates to your current job and maintains or improves the skills you need for your current duties, or is likely to increase your income from your current employment. It is not deductible if it only relates to your job in a general way, or is to get a job or change jobs. In the ATO's example, Denise cannot claim a Certificate I in security operations she studies while working as a bank teller, but once she starts as a security advisor in the bank's security division, a Certificate II would be claimable. HECS-HELP fees and study loan repayments are not deductible.
Phone, data and internet costs are deductible for the work-related use of your own devices, but not a phone your employer provides and pays for. Keep your bills and a record of how you worked out your work use.
Working from home counts only when it adds to your running costs, and minimal tasks, such as checking your shift times, do not count. The fixed rate method is 70 cents per work hour for 2024-25 and 2025-26, with a record of your actual hours.
Union and professional association fees are deductible, and your income statement can be your proof.
For the 2025-26 return you are lodging now: receipts for everything you claim, your income statement and payslips, which show your allowances, kilometre records or a logbook for car claims, and a record of your hours if you work from home. 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.
Individual tax return by email: $330. In person at Balcatta or online: $440.
Add a rental property, a sole trader schedule, or share and crypto trading: $100 each.
Business consultation, 60 minutes: $400.
All prices include GST, and we agree the fee before we start. See the full price list.
Can I claim my security licence?
Not the first one you get to start the job, but you can claim renewing it so you can keep working. In the ATO's example, a trainee guard cannot claim his $160 licence, but can claim the $140 renewal the following year.
Can I claim my first aid course?
Yes, if you are a designated first aid person and need the course to help in emergency situations at work, and your employer does not pay for it. If you need the certificate for your security licence but are not a designated first aid person, talk to us before you claim it.
Can I claim my uniform and shoes?
A compulsory uniform that identifies your employer, such as a polo shirt with its logo, yes, if you paid for it, and washing it too. Plain black pants, white shirts and black enclosed shoes are conventional clothing, so they are private even if your employer requires them. Talk to us before you claim safety boots.
Can I claim driving between sites?
Driving directly between two jobs on the same day, or between venues for the same employer on the same day, yes. The trip from home to your regular site is private, even if you are called back for an extra shift. A relief guard who stays at one site for each shift cannot claim the trip from home either. If you patrol in your own car, talk to us before you claim it.
How does the $1,000 standard deduction work for security guards?
From the 2026-27 return, you get up to $1,000 automatically, with no receipts needed. Any work expenses you claim reduce it, so it helps most when your work expenses are under $1,000. If they are over, claim them as normal and keep records for every dollar. Union and professional association fees go on top either way.
Do you work with security guards 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 security guards, 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 police, hospitality workers and FIFO and mining workers.