05/06/2026
The laptop on your dining table doesn't turn the room into a home office just because you answer emails there between breakfast and dinner π’
A dedicated home office means *exclusive* work use. WHICH MEANS π
A space that's genuinely set aside for work and not also serving as the place where your family eats, your kids do homework, and you store the good china.
You can absolutely claim work-from-home running costs at 70 cents per hour for working at that dining table.
What you can't do is claim a percentage of your rent on a room that spends most of its time being a dining room.
The ATO's test is simple: if someone could reasonably walk in and use the space for something other than work, it's not exclusive use. Your dining table fails that test every time someone sits down for a meal.