Home/Rideshare tax
Uber · DiDi · Ola · Uber Eats · DoorDash · MenulogRideshare and delivery driver tax returns
You are running a business on four wheels. We handle the ABN income, the GST and BAS, the car claim and the return — so the ATO's platform data match never turns into a letter.
Driving for a platform is a business, not a job
From the first fare you accept you are a sole trader in business for yourself. The platform pays you gross, takes its commission, and reports the whole lot to the ATO — so the income side of your return is already known to them before you lodge anything.
That means the income goes on a business schedule attached to your individual return, and ride-sourcing carries one extra rule: passenger travel booked through a platform is treated like taxi travel for GST, so you register and charge GST from your first dollar of fares rather than waiting for the $75,000 small business threshold.
The GST you collect is remitted quarterly in your BAS, and you claim back the GST on fuel, servicing, insurance and the platform's commission. Handled properly the BAS is close to neutral; handled late it becomes penalties and interest.
What you can claim, and what you cannot
The ATO reviews ride-sourcing returns by comparing platform income against the car claim behind it. A neat, documented claim is the difference between a refund and an audit.
Platform commission and service fees
Every trip carries a platform cut. That commission is deductible, and the GST on it is a credit in your BAS.
Car running costs
Fuel, registration, insurance, servicing, tyres and repairs, plus depreciation on the vehicle. Claim the business-use share using either the cents-per-kilometre method or a logbook.
Phone, data and mount
The phone is your dispatch radio. The business share of your plan, a phone mount, charger and cable are all claimable.
Cleaning, tolls and airport fees
Cleaning the car between shifts, tolls incurred on trips and airport access charges — small amounts that add up over a year of shifts.
What is not claimable
Fines and toll notices, the private share of your driving, and ordinary clothing, no matter how often you wear it for work.
Keeping records that survive a review
A logbook that expired three years ago, a cents-per-kilometre claim with no odometer readings, and a year of fuel receipts mixed in with the family car are the three things we fix most often.
We keep a current logbook (12 continuous weeks, valid for five years), reconcile your platform statements against your bank account, and split business from private use properly so the claim holds together under scrutiny.
If you have been driving without lodging, or have BAS quarters outstanding, we bring everything up to date in order and apply for remission of failure-to-lodge penalties where there are grounds for it.
Rideshare tax — frequently asked
Driven this financial year?
Send us your platform statements and your car details and we will come back with a fixed fee, the GST position and what your refund looks like — usually within one business day.