Teacher Tax Return Checklist 2026: Lodge by 31 October

On this page (10 sections)

The deadline: what 31 October 2026 means for you
Step 1: Check your income is 'Tax ready'
Step 2: Use the right year's rules (2025–26, not 2026–27)
Step 3: Gather your teacher deductions
Step 4: Work out what your deductions are worth
Step 5: Check HELP, the Medicare levy surcharge and super
Step 6: Strip out the claims the ATO targets
Step 7: Lodge, then check your notice of assessment
Get ahead for 2026–27 (the return you'll lodge next July)
FAQs

The short answer

If you lodge your own 2025–26 return, it's due by 31 October 2026. Before you lodge, check your income statement says 'Tax ready', add union fees, registration renewal, WFH hours at 70c an hour and equipment, and check your private hospital cover if you earned over $101,000. Using a registered tax agent? You must be on their books by 31 October.

This return covers 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026 and uses 2025–26 rules, not the 2026–27 ones.
The $1,000 standard deduction does not apply yet. Itemise every work cost you can prove.
Each $100 of deductions saves most teachers $32, plus $15 if you have a HELP debt and earned between $67,000 and $125,000.
31 October 2026 is a Saturday. Don't count on the weekend. Lodge this week.

The deadline: what 31 October 2026 means for you

The 31 October deadline applies if you lodge yourself through myTax (via myGov) or on paper. Your 2025–26 return covers every dollar you earned from 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026. That's the year of the NSW 3% rise from October 2025, the WA 3% rise from December 2025, the NT 4.3% rise from January 2026 and the SA 3% rise in May 2026.

Your options this close to the deadline

Your situation	What to do by 31 October 2026	Why
Lodging yourself in myTax	Lodge by Friday 30 October to be safe	31 October is a Saturday. Some tax firms say self-lodgers get until Monday 2 November, but don't plan around it.
Want a tax agent to do it	Contact a registered tax agent now and get added to their client list before 31 October	The ATO says agents must add new clients by 31 October. If you're added in time, the agent's later lodgment program date can apply.
Already a tax agent's client	Send them your documents now	Their later due date usually only applies if your earlier returns are up to date.
You have unlodged returns from earlier years	Talk to a tax agent this week	Earlier overdue returns can stop the agent's later due date applying to your 2026 return.
You only earned salary and owe nothing	Still lodge, or tell the ATO you don't need to	Most full-time teachers must lodge. If you're sure you don't need to, submit a 'non-lodgment advice' instead.

Agent cut-off from the ATO's tax professionals newsroom (October 2026). Check the ATO's lodgment page if you're unsure.

Work out what your deductions are worth

⚙Your details

State or territory

Salary

Pay step (NSW, from 9 October 2026)

I have a HECS-HELP debtDeductions also lower your HELP repayment income.

Working from home

Hours a week

hrs

Weeks a year

wks

Fixed rate per hour

$/hr

70c is the rate for 2024–25 and 2025–26. The ATO hasn't published the 2026–27 rate yet, so update this when it does.

Fees and courses

Union fees (per year)

Registration renewal (NESA)

NESA: $100 per calendar year.

Working with children check (renewal only)

Working With Children Check: $112 for paid workers (from 1 July 2026), free for volunteers, valid 5 years. A first check isn't deductible.

First aid course

Self-education (courses, conferences)

Things you bought

Teaching resources and classroom supplies

Not home-office stationery if you use the fixed WFH rate (it already covers that).

Laptop or tablet: price paid

Leave at 0 if the school supplies your device.

Car and other

Work km a year

Rate per km

$/km

88c is the 2025–26 rate reported by secondary sources (91c reported for 2026–27). Neither is confirmed on the ATO site, so check before you lodge. Max 5,000 km.

Other work expenses

Tax your deductions save in 2026–27

$429

Claiming your actual expenses ($1,340) beats the $1,000 standard deduction · marginal rate 32% incl. Medicare

Your actual claims

$1,340

4 items

Standard deduction

$1,000

Automatic, no receipts

You claim

$1,340

Itemised (records needed)

Extra vs $1,000

$109

Tax saved by itemising

What this means

Your claims add up to $1,340, which is $340 more than the standard deduction. Itemising cuts your tax by about $429, which is $109 more than the $1,000 standard deduction alone would save. Because you're claiming more than $1,000, you need records for every item, not only the ones over $1,000.

Each extra $100 you can legitimately claim above $1,000 is worth about $32 to you. A deduction never gives back more than the tax on it: $100 of expenses doesn't become $100 back.

Where each dollar goes

Working from home$140 (10%)
Union and registration$950 (71%)
Resources and other$250 (19%)
Courses and first aid$0 (0%)
Laptop and car$0 (0%)

Item	Claim	Tax value (approx.)
Working from home (5 h × 40 wks × 70c)	$140	$45
Union fees	$850	$272
Teaching resources for your class	$250	$80
Self-education	$0	$0
Registration renewal (NESA)	$100	$32
Working with children check renewal	$0	$0
First aid course	$0	$0
Laptop/tablet	$0	$0
Car (work trips)	$0	$0
Other work expenses	$0	$0
Total actual claims	$1,340	$429

Option	Deduction	Taxable income	Tax + Medicare	Saved
No deductions (for comparison)	$0	$92,882	$20,242	$0
$1,000 standard deduction	$1,000	$91,882	$19,922	$320
Your actual claims	$1,340	$91,542	$19,813	$429

Records checklist

Working from home: A record of the actual hours you worked from home all year (timesheet, roster or diary), plus one bill for each running expense the rate covers.
Union fees: Annual statement from your union, or bank/payroll records of the deductions.
Teaching resources for your class: Receipts showing what, when and how much. Note why each item was for work.
Registration renewal: Receipt or invoice from the registration body.

You're claiming more than $1,000, so keep written evidence for every item. Keep records for 5 years from lodging.

Estimates for an Australian resident for 2026–27 with salary as the only income, using 2026–27 tax rates. The $1,000 standard deduction became law on 26 June 2026 and applies from 2026–27 returns (lodged from July 2027), not 2025–26 returns. Expenses must be work-related, paid by you and not reimbursed. The WFH rate and car rate are editable because the 2026–27 figures aren't confirmed by the ATO yet. This isn't tax advice: check the ATO's guide for teachers or a registered tax agent. Pay data: Crown Employees (Teachers in Schools and Related Employees) Salaries and Conditions Award 2024, verified 16 October 2026.

Step 1: Check your income is 'Tax ready'

Your employer reports your pay to the ATO through Single Touch Payroll. In myGov, go to the ATO's Employment > Income statements section. Each statement should say Tax ready. If it says 'Not tax ready', your employer hasn't finalised it. Contact your payroll team (your department, Catholic system office or school business manager) before you lodge.

Income to check before you start

One income statement for each employer in 2025–26. Teachers who did casual relief work for a second school system will have two.
Any lump sum back pay, and what it relates to. Back pay for an earlier income year is shown separately and may qualify for a tax offset. See tax on teacher back pay.
Government Paid Parental Leave from Services Australia, if you had a baby. It's taxable and shows up as a separate income statement.
Reportable employer super contributions (salary sacrifice to super). It isn't taxed as salary, but it counts for HELP, the Medicare levy surcharge and some offsets.
Reportable fringe benefits if you packaged at a Catholic or independent school. Again, not taxed as salary but counted for HELP and the surcharge.
Bank interest, dividends, rental income or a side business such as tutoring, which the ATO may not pre-fill in full.

Tutoring is the one teachers forget most. If you tutored privately and were paid in cash or by bank transfer, that income goes in your return as business income or other income, and the ATO matches payment platform data.

Step 2: Use the right year's rules (2025–26, not 2026–27)

Much of what you'll read online this month is about the 2026–27 changes. Your return now runs on the 2025–26 rules. The differences matter if you're checking whether your refund looks right.

The rules that apply to the return you're lodging now

Rule	2025–26 return (lodge now)	2026–27 (next July)
Tax rate on $18,201–$45,000	16%	15%
Tax rate on $45,001–$135,000	30%	30%
$1,000 standard deduction	Does not apply	Applies automatically
Working from home fixed rate	70c an hour	Not yet published
HELP repayments start at	$67,000 repayment income	$69,528
Medicare levy surcharge starts (singles)	Over $101,000	Over $105,000
Concessional super cap	$30,000	$32,500

ATO tax rates, HELP thresholds, MLS thresholds and super caps pages. More on what changed in the 2026–27 tax cuts for teachers.

Step 3: Gather your teacher deductions

Every claim must pass the ATO's three tests: you paid for it yourself, it relates directly to your teaching income, and you have a record. If your work claims add up to more than $300, you need written evidence for all of them. Our full guide to teacher tax deductions covers the rules for each item. This list is for gathering paperwork fast.

Teacher deductions for 2025–26: find the record for each

Union fees paid between 1 July 2025 and 30 June 2026. Your union's annual statement gives the total. See are union fees tax deductible.
Registration renewal, such as NESA, VIT, QCT, TRB or TQI, paid in 2025–26. Your first registration doesn't count. See is teacher registration tax deductible.
Working with Children Check renewal, if you renewed to keep teaching.
Working from home hours: a record of every hour of marking, planning and reporting at home, claimed at 70c an hour. See the teacher working from home deduction.
Laptop, tablet or printer: the invoice and your work-use percentage. Items over $300 are depreciated. See the teacher laptop tax deduction.
Classroom resources you bought and weren't reimbursed for: receipts or bank statement lines.
Professional learning and study linked to your current role. See self-education expenses.
Travel between schools or to excursions and off-site PD, with a logbook or diary. Tax firms report the 2025–26 car rate as 88c per km (up to 5,000 km). Confirm it in myTax.
First aid course, if first aid is part of your duties.
Cost of managing your tax affairs, such as last year's tax agent fee.
Donations of $2 or more to deductible gift recipients.

Step 4: Work out what your deductions are worth

A deduction saves you your marginal rate, not the full amount. For 2025–26, a teacher earning between $45,001 and $135,000 saves 30c in tax plus 2c Medicare levy per dollar. If you have a HELP debt, deductions also cut your repayment income, so you save a further 15c per dollar while your repayment income sits between $67,000 and $125,000.

Worked example

A classroom teacher with a HELP debt itemises $1,400 of work costs (2025–26)

Union fees, registration renewal and WWCC renewal: $650 (illustrative)
WFH: 600 hours at 70c: $420
Laptop decline in value (work share): $330 (illustrative)
Total deductions: $1,400
Tax and Medicare saved at 32%: $448
HELP repayment saved at 15%: $210

Total benefit $658 more in your pocket

Illustrative amounts. Assumes repayment income between $67,000 and $125,000 after deductions, using the 2025–26 marginal rates. Your own figures will differ.

So 600 hours of logged home marking is worth more than $200 to a teacher with a HELP debt. That's why it's worth finding your diary or calendar before you lodge. The ATO needs a record made at the time, though, not a guess made in October.

Free calculator

Teacher tax deductions calculator

Enter your union fees, registration, WFH hours and equipment to see the total and what it saves at your salary.

Add up my deductions

Step 5: Check HELP, the Medicare levy surcharge and super

These three items catch teachers out at the step where their salary pushes past a threshold. Check them before you press submit.

Three threshold checks

1

HELP repayment

If your 2025–26 repayment income was over $67,000, a compulsory repayment is worked out in your assessment. It's 15c for each dollar between $67,000 and $125,000. Your employer should have withheld extra tax for it if you ticked the HELP box on your TFN declaration. If you didn't, expect a bill. The 20% HELP debt cut was applied automatically from November 2025, so you don't need to claim it. See HECS-HELP for teachers.
2

Medicare levy surcharge

If you're single, had no private hospital cover for all of 2025–26, and your income for surcharge purposes was over $101,000, you pay an extra 1% to 1.5% of that whole income. Income for surcharge purposes includes salary-sacrificed super and reportable fringe benefits. A NSW teacher at Step 4 or above for the full year was over the line. Have your private health insurance statement ready, or confirm your fund has sent it to the ATO.
3

Personal super contributions

If you put after-tax money into super and want to claim it, you must send your fund a 'notice of intent' and get its acknowledgement before you lodge. The 2025–26 concessional cap was $30,000, and it includes your employer's 12% and any salary sacrifice.

Step 6: Strip out the claims the ATO targets

The ATO publishes its teacher guidance because the same errors keep coming up. Remove these before you lodge. A wrong claim can mean an amended assessment, interest and a penalty later.

Most bad claims come down to who paid, and whether the item is private.

Delete these

Driving from home to your usual school
Clothing, including PE gear and runners
Your first registration or first WWCC
Anything your school or system paid you back for
100% of a laptop or phone you also use privately
WFH electricity or internet claimed on top of the 70c rate
Childcare

Keep these (with records)

Trips between two schools on the same day
A compulsory, logoed school uniform
Registration and WWCC renewals
Unreimbursed classroom resources
The work share only of mixed-use items
Laptop depreciation, claimed separately from the 70c rate
Study linked to your current role

Step 7: Lodge, then check your notice of assessment

Lodging in myTax

1

Log in to myGov and open the ATO service

Choose Lodge a tax return for 2026 (the 2025–26 year). Wait until pre-fill has loaded your income statements, private health and bank interest.
2

Confirm the pre-filled income

Compare it with your income statements. Add anything missing, such as tutoring income or a second employer.
3

Enter deductions at the right labels

Work-related expenses go under the work-related deduction sections. Union fees and registration usually sit under 'Other work-related expenses'. WFH at 70c an hour has its own section.
4

Check the estimate

myTax shows an estimate before you submit. If it shows a big bill, check the HELP and surcharge items first. They're the usual cause for teachers.
5

Submit and keep your records

Keep receipts, logs and statements for five years from when you lodge. Your notice of assessment usually arrives within two weeks for online returns.

If you realise later that you missed a deduction, you can amend the return in myTax. You don't need to rush and risk a wrong claim now. Lodging on time and amending later is better than lodging late.

Get ahead for 2026–27 (the return you'll lodge next July)

Next year looks different. The bottom tax rate is 15%. The $1,000 standard deduction applies automatically, and your itemised work claims reduce it, so records only pay off if your real costs beat $1,000. Whether union fees count towards that total or can be claimed on top of the $1,000 isn't confirmed yet, so check the ATO's 2026–27 guidance before you lodge. Victorian teachers expect VGSA 2026 back pay now the Fair Work Commission has approved the agreement (16 October 2026), and that back pay will land in 2026–27. Start a WFH log and a receipts folder now.

Read the $1,000 standard deduction for teachers to decide whether to keep itemising.
Check your take-home at your new step with the take-home pay calculator.
Download the printable teacher tax return checklist and keep it with your receipts.

Frequently asked questions

When is the tax return deadline for 2026?

If you lodge your own 2025–26 return, the deadline is 31 October 2026. That date is a Saturday, so lodge by Friday 30 October to be safe. If you use a registered tax agent, you must be on their client list by 31 October to get their later lodgment program date.

Can teachers claim the $1,000 standard deduction this year?

No. The $1,000 standard deduction starts with the 2026–27 income year, which you'll lodge from July 2027. For the 2025–26 return you're lodging now, you claim your actual work-related costs, with records.

What happens if I lodge my tax return late?

The ATO can charge a failure-to-lodge penalty for each 28 days the return is late, up to five penalty units. It often doesn't apply the penalty when you're owed a refund, but it can. If you're going to be late, contact the ATO or a tax agent before 31 October.

What can teachers claim on their 2025–26 tax return?

Union fees, registration and WWCC renewals, working from home at 70c an hour, the work share of laptops and phones, unreimbursed classroom resources, PD and study linked to your current role, travel between schools, and last year's tax agent fee. You need records for all of them if the total is over $300.

Why do I owe tax when I'm a teacher on PAYG?

The most common reasons are a HELP repayment your employer didn't withhold enough for, the Medicare levy surcharge if you earned over $101,000 without private hospital cover, a second job or tutoring income, or back pay. Check those items in your myTax estimate.

Is it too late to use a tax agent?

Not if you act before 31 October 2026. A registered tax agent needs to add you to their client list by then. After that date the agent can still lodge for you, but the return is already late.

How long should teachers keep tax receipts?

Five years from the date you lodge the return. Photos of receipts are fine. The ATO app's myDeductions tool lets you store them through the year.

Sources we checked · last verified 2026-10-28

About this page

Written and fact-checked by the TeacherPay AU Editorial Team against the enterprise agreements, awards and official pages listed in the sources. It is general information, not personal financial, tax or legal advice. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll fix it, usually within a day. See our editorial policy and how we calculate.

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