Deductions for Academic Conference and Training Courses

 Author: KaraATO(Community Support)Community Support

12 Jan 2026

Hi @brown_deer,

Yes, there are limits to claiming deductions. The basic rule is that you can only claim the work-related portion of an expense, and it must be directly related to earning your income. The expense can't be private, domestic or capital in nature.

When it comes to travel expenses like flights and accommodation, you can only claim what you actually incurred for work purposes. If you're travelling overnight for work and choose first-class tickets or five-star hotels, you can technically claim these costs – but only if they're genuinely work-related and you weren't reimbursed. However, you need to be able to prove the expense was necessary and directly related to earning your income.

The key safeguards are:

• you must have spent the money yourself and not been reimbursed
• you need written evidence (receipts) if your total deductions exceed $300
• you can only claim the work-related portion of any expense that has both work and private elements
• if you include private travel or luxury elements beyond what's necessary for work, you can only claim the amount that would've been incurred for the work purpose alone.

For example, if you book a two-bedroom apartment to accommodate family members during a work trip, you can only claim what a single-room accommodation would've cost. We will review the claims to make sure they're reasonable and directly connected to earning income.

I'd recommend having a read through the myTax work-related travel for 2025 financial year. Even if your question is for 2025-26 financial year, it has links to other relatable pages and overall should help you work out what you can claim and records you must keep.

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