Repairs, assets and depreciation

Learn about the differences between repairs and capital expenses, how depreciation works and what you may be able to claim at tax time.

Repairs and assets

You can generally claim a tax deduction for expenses relating to repairs or maintenance of machinery, tools or premises you use to produce business income, as long as the expenses are not capital expenses. A capital expense is money spent to purchase assets like plant and equipment, motor vehices, land and buildings.

Assets and depreciation

Businesses can generally claim a tax deduction for capital assets over a period of time. This is known as depreciation. Examples of capital assets include:
  • machinery and equipment
  • motor vehicles
  • furniture, carpet and curtains

Instant asset write off

Eligible businesses may be able to claim an immediate deduction for the business portion of the cost of an asset in the year the asset is first used or installed ready for use. The instant asset write-off eligibility criteria and threshold have changed over time. You need to check your business's eligibility and apply the correct threshold amount depending on when the asset was purchased, first used or installed ready for use.

Car cost limit

There is a limit on the cost you can use to work out the depreciation of passenger vehicles designed to carry a load of less than one tonne and fewer than nine passengers. The maximum value you can use for calculating your claim is the car limit in the year in which you first used or leased the car. The car cost limit for 2024 year is $68,108.

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I’m Sharon, a registered BAS agent and QuickBooks Certified Advanced with more than 20 years' experience in the industry.Get in touch to find out how I can support you and your business to stay on top of your numbers to run a successful business.
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