Can Teachers Claim Lab Coats on Tax in Australia?

Short answer: yes, in most cases. If you're a science teacher buying your own lab coat and safety spectacles because your school requires them for lab classes, that's protective clothing — and the ATO treats protective clothing differently from ordinary clothes. Here's how it works. (General information only, not tax advice — confirm your situation with your registered tax agent.)

Why Lab Coats Are Different From Regular Clothes

The ATO's rules on work clothing have three tiers:

Conventional clothing (even if your employer requires it): generally NOT deductible
Uniforms — compulsory, unique and distinctive (logo-branded): deductible
Protective clothing and PPE — clothing you wear to protect yourself from illness or injury at work: deductible

A lab coat sits squarely in tier 3. It's not worn for appearance; it exists to put a barrier between you and the chemicals, heat and biological hazards of a school laboratory. Safety glasses, gloves and other PPE sit in the same category. Australian tax guidance for teachers specifically lists lab coats and safety glasses for science teachers as claimable protective items.

The Conditions (The Fine Print)

You paid for it yourself and weren't reimbursed — school-issued coats aren't claimable by you because you didn't buy them
It's connected to earning your income — teaching in labs, not wearing it around the house
It's actually protective — a lab coat, not a regular white shirt worn for practical classes
The claimable amount is what you paid — including our $5 safety spectacles and the $24 ex GST coat price, GST inclusive at checkout on your receipt

What About the School Logo Coat?

If your school requires logo-printed lab coats (free DTF logo printing on 10+ coats through us — see Logo Printing), the printed coat is still protective clothing first; the logo doesn't change the deduction, but keep the receipt either way.

Don't Forget the Laundry Claim

You can also claim the cost of washing your lab coat. The ATO allows a per-load rate (currently $1.50 per load, claimable up to $150 total per year without written evidence — higher amounts need records) for eligible work clothing. A weekly lab-coat wash is a small claim, but it's a real one, and it's exactly the kind of thing that adds up in a teacher's return.

Keep These Records

The invoice/receipt from your purchase (we issue proper tax invoices — GST shown separately)
A note of the laundering you do (even a diary estimate satisfies the under-$150 rule)
If your school reimburses you later, that reimbursement offsets the claim

One Honest, Practical Note

Many teachers end up buying class sets or spares personally (we see it — personal orders of 5 to 30 coats from teacher email addresses, far more often than official school POs). If the coats are genuinely yours to use in your teaching, the protective-clothing logic can extend — but that's exactly the scenario to run past your tax agent rather than assume. If your school should be paying, flip it instead: schools order on Purchase Orders with no minimum, so you never front the money at all.

Get Your Coat (and Keep the Receipt)

Shop lab coats — $24 ex GST white, $27 navy, $5 safety spectacles, tax invoice with every order. Questions about invoicing for a claim? Contact us.