Tax time is officially here and Australians are being urged to make sure they are claiming all the deductions they are entitled to. The average Australian has claimed $3,518 worth of tax deductions in previous years and tax agents say there are some easy deductions people forget each year.

Tax App director Alesha Masaud said she often sees people miss out on tax deductions for work-related assets and equipment. The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) allows you to claim a deduction for tools or equipment that you use for work.

“Anything that’s an asset, so for example laptops, phones, monitors, printers, scanners, office chairs, even storage or filing systems,” Masaud said.

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For assets under $300, the accountant noted you can claim the full amount immediately. But for assets over $300, you will have to depreciate them over the useful life of the asset.

You can use the ATO’s depreciation and capital allowance tool to work out your claim, or you can manually calculate the decline in value using the prime cost method or diminishing value method.

Chartered accountant and Tax App managing director Fahad Gul said another common mistake he saw was around deductions for personal superannuation contributions.

“They have been contributing into super and do not lodge a notice of intent and they miss out on a tax deduction,” Gul told Yahoo Finance.

“Super gets taxed at a 15 per cent flat rate. So high-income earners, people who are in the 30 per cent plus brackets, would definitely want to do that. However, people who are on a lower tax bracket may choose not to claim a deduction for the extra super contribution.”

The form has to be lodged with your super fund on or before the day you lodge your tax return, or the last day of the income year after the year you made the contributions.

Tax return checklist

To help you prepare your tax return, Masuad and Gul have shared a checklist of common tax deductions that you may be able to claim.

Remember, you'll need to have records to prove you incurred the expense, usually a receipt.

Work-related deductions

• Vehicle and travel expenses (logbook or cents/km)

• Home office expenses (fixed rate or actual cost)

• Work-related phone and internet (proportional use), not to claim if claiming fixed rate WFH

• Tools and equipment used for work

• Uniforms and protective clothing

• Union fees or professional memberships

• Work-related self-education expenses

• Conference or seminar costs

• Journals, trade subscriptions or apps used for work