Deductibility of prescription spectacles for work use

Whether the taxpayer is entitled to a deduction under section 8-1 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (ITAA 1997) for the cost of purchasing the prescribed tinted spectacles, which are solely for use in performing screen based activities at work.

The taxpayer is entitled to a deduction under section 8-1 (ITAA 1997) for the cost of the tinted prescription spectacles when they are used exclusively to perform screen based activities at work.

The taxpayer is an administration officer. The taxpayer is required to use a computer for long periods in order to perform the duties required by the job.

The taxpayer undergoes a full eye examination by an optometrist. As a result, the taxpayer is prescribed single vision lenses specifically for screen based use. The spectacles are tinted to provide glare protection and are designed to be worn at a specific distance from the computer screen. The taxpayer wears the spectacles only at work and never removes the spectacles from the workplace. The taxpayer owns and wears other spectacles for the purposes of driving a motor vehicle and watching television.

A general deduction is allowed for outgoings incurred in gaining or producing assessable income, providing they are not of a private, capital or domestic nature, or incurred in earning exempt income: section 8-1 (ITAA 1997).

In this case, the spectacles are tinted and they provide protection against the glare emanating from the computer screen used in the taxpayer's employment. The taxpayer purchases the prescribed tinted spectacles for use exclusively at work and the spectacles are unsuitable for normal private use. The fact that the spectacles have a corrective capacity is incidental to the main purpose of the taxpayer wearing the spectacles, which is to protect the taxpayer from possible eye damage at work and to assist the taxpayer in performing work duties: Case U124 87 ATC 741; AAT Case 87 (1987) 18 ATR 3624.

Accordingly, the cost of the prescribed tinted spectacles is a work related expense and is not of a private or domestic nature. The expenditure incurred by the taxpayer to purchase the prescribed tinted spectacles is therefore deductible under section 8-1 (ITAA 1997). This result is consistent with the view expressed in Taxation Ruling IT 2477 in relation to the deductibility of expenditure incurred in purchasing eye glasses for use by a visual display unit operator.