Tax Deductions for Chefs

Average weekly pay:     $1,050
Employment size:         85,000  
Future growth:              Very strong   
Skill level                        Associate degree or diploma  

A chef is a trained professional cook who is proficient in all aspects of food preparation. The word ‘chef’ is derived from the term chef de cuisine, the director or head of a kitchen. 

Typical tax deductions:

• Home office running expenses.
• Journals, periodicals and magazines that have a content sufficiently connected to a chef’s employment.
• Mobile telephone and internet costs (work related portion only).
• Union and professional association fees.
• Work-related travel (Picking up food supplies, attending seminars, travel between restaurants, etc.). 
• Knives, tools and equipment (Items costing less than $300 each are immediately deductible, with higher valued items being depreciated over several years).
• Traditional chef’s uniform (for example, a set of clothing consisting of a chef’s hat, chef’s checked pants, a chef’s white jacket and a white neckerchief).
• Computer (If used for work purposes depreciated over the effective life. NB: Deduct private use portion).
• Conferences, seminars and training courses to maintain or increase a chef’s knowledge, ability or skills (requires a relevant nexus with the current work-related activities).
• First aid course.
• Laundry and maintenance of uniforms.
• Self-education expenses (must be a direct connection between the self-education and the chef’s current income-earning activities).
  

Atypical deductions:

• Travel to and from work while transporting bulky equipment (normally 20 plus kilos). A deduction is allowable if it’s essential that the chef use the bulky equipment in their daily job, and there is no secure place to store it at work. A deduction is not allowable if the equipment is transported to and from work by the chef as a matter of convenience. 
• Overseas conferences, courses and study tours. This could be undertaking a month-long cooking course in Normandy, (France) studying, eating good food, and drinking fine French wines. These travel expenses will generally be deductible if they enable the chef to become more proficient in carrying out their current job, and will likely lead to an increase in the income from their current job.