Tax deductions for cleaners
As a cleaner you can generally claim the supplies and equipment you buy, protective clothing, and the cost of driving between clients during the day.
Build your checklistCleaning work spreads across sites and the small costs add up fast — products, gloves, and the kilometres between jobs. Here’s what usually counts.
The three rules for any claim
- You paid for it yourself and weren’t reimbursed.
- It directly relates to earning your income.
- You have a record — a receipt, invoice or bank statement.
Checked against ATO guidance: September 2026
What you can usually claim
Cleaning supplies and equipment
Chemicals, cloths, mops, vacuums and other equipment you buy to do the work. Larger equipment may be claimed over its effective life.
Protective clothing
Gloves, aprons, masks and non-slip footwear needed for the work, plus laundering costs for protective items.
Travel between clients
Driving from one client to the next during your working day is generally claimable. The logbook and cents-per-kilometre methods apply only to a car — built to carry under one tonne and fewer than nine passengers — so a heavier van is claimed at actual cost apportioned to work use instead. Home to your first job and last job home usually isn’t claimable either way.
Buying bigger gear: what happens at tax time
A commercial vacuum or a floor scrubber bought on an ABN with GST registration gives you the GST credit on the activity statement straight away, with the cost claimed over its effective life. Using the same machine at home trims the share you claim each year; the register keeps carrying the full cost.
General information, not personal tax advice. What you can claim depends on your circumstances — check the ATO's own occupation guides or a registered tax agent, and keep records for every claim.
Keep in mind
- Everyday clothing worn to work that isn’t protective.
- The trip from home to your first client and back from the last.
- Supplies the client or your employer provides.
Where mistakes happen
The claims most likely to get adjusted — not because they're disallowed outright, but because the split or the timing was off.
- Claiming the drive from home to your first client and home from your last — that's treated as an ordinary commute, not work travel.
- Claiming cleaning products or equipment the client already supplied or reimbursed.
Take it further
Your income tax, Medicare levy and take-home pay on any salary.
2Fin for sole traders →One account, two lives, already sorted
Track it: the asset register →Log the purchase once and 2Fin carries the effective life, the yearly deduction and the private-use share for you.
Logbook method (car expenses) →Claim your car’s real business-use share of running costs.
Sole trader →The simplest business structure — you and the business are one.
Effective life →How many years an asset is expected to be used — the base of every depreciation rate.
Capital purchase (GST on Capital) →An asset you buy to use over years — G10 on the BAS, then depreciated.
Cleaners — common questions
Can I claim my car if I clean at several homes a day?
Travel between clients during the day is generally deductible, and the private portion isn’t. Which method you use depends on the vehicle: logbook and cents-per-kilometre are only for a car — built to carry under one tonne and fewer than nine passengers — while a heavier van is claimed at actual cost apportioned to work use. This is general information, not personal tax advice — what you can claim depends on your circumstances, so check with the ATO or a registered tax agent, and keep records to back up every claim.
Are cleaning products deductible?
Products and equipment you buy yourself to do the work are generally claimable, with records kept. This is general information, not personal tax advice — what you can claim depends on your circumstances, so check with the ATO or a registered tax agent, and keep records to back up every claim.
Can I claim gloves and non-slip shoes for cleaning work?
Generally yes. Gloves, aprons, masks and non-slip footwear needed for the work are typically claimable, along with the cost of laundering protective items. Everyday clothing worn to work that isn’t protective stays private, so the test is whether the item protects you on the job rather than whether you wear it there. This is general information, not personal tax advice — what you can claim depends on your circumstances, so check with the ATO or a registered tax agent, and keep records to back up every claim.
What if the client supplies the cleaning products?
Then there is generally nothing to claim for them — supplies the client or your employer provides, or later reimburses, are outside the claim. Products and equipment you buy yourself to do the work are a different story and are typically claimable with records kept. This is general information, not personal tax advice — what you can claim depends on your circumstances, so check with the ATO or a registered tax agent, and keep records to back up every claim.
How is a commercial vacuum or floor scrubber claimed?
Generally over its effective life rather than all at once, because larger equipment is treated as a depreciating asset. If you work on an ABN with GST registration, the GST credit goes on the activity statement straight away while the cost is spread over the machine’s life. Using the same machine at home trims the share you claim each year. This is general information, not personal tax advice — what you can claim depends on your circumstances, so check with the ATO or a registered tax agent, and keep records to back up every claim.
Deductions for other occupations
See all occupations.
Let Fin surface these for you
On a PAYG wage, an ABN or both, 2Fin tags each expense work-related, business or personal as it lands, keeps the receipt with it, and exports your deductions to ATO myDeductions. Record the PAYG withheld from each pay and it shows a live estimate of your refund or what you owe across your salary, business and rental income. See what it does. Free to start, no card needed.
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