Audience: Personal trainers, fitness coaches and fitness industry workers in Australia.
Scope note: This page covers both employees and self-employed trainers. Gym floor rental, contractor models and private fitness costs need careful separation.
Intro
Personal trainers often have a business model with mixed costs: equipment, phone use, scheduling software, insurance, travel between clients and admin from home. The biggest trap is confusing business expenses with private fitness expenses. Your own gym membership, everyday activewear and personal training for yourself are not the same as costs of earning income.
Common deductions
- Equipment used to train clients, such as cones, resistance bands, mats, stopwatches or other business-use items you pay for yourself.
- Phone and internet costs used for client contact, programming, app access and scheduling.
- Travel between gyms, client homes or other training venues where the ATO travel rules allow it.
- Professional indemnity or public liability insurance connected to the business or role.
- CPR, first aid and other training that maintains or supports your current work as a trainer.
Industry-specific deductions
- Gym floor rental or facility access fees you pay to deliver sessions as part of your business model.
- Booking software, music services used for classes, coaching apps and payment processing subscriptions where they relate to the work.
- Marketing expenses for acquiring clients, including website hosting, social ads or flyers for sole traders.
- Laundry and cleaning costs for eligible work clothing or towels used in the business where the rules allow it.
Hidden deductions
- Home-based admin costs for writing programs, invoicing and bookkeeping.
- Tax agent, accounting and bookkeeping software fees.
- Work-related use of a laptop or tablet used for client programs and business admin.
- Small props and consumables replaced regularly for sessions.
What you can’t claim
- Your own private gym membership or private fitness expenses.
- Ordinary activewear, runners or tracksuits unless they qualify as deductible clothing under the ATO rules.
- Private travel or private phone use.
- Training that only helps you move into a different role rather than improve your current work.
- Any amount a gym or employer reimbursed.
Tips to maximise your return
- Write down why each recurring expense exists in the business. That makes it much easier to separate private wellness costs from genuine income-producing expenses.
- Keep a representative four-week phone and internet record if those are meaningful claims.
- If you travel between multiple client locations, keep a same-day travel log instead of relying on calendar memory later.
- If you use a home office only for admin and not as a client-facing place of business, check which home-based expense method actually fits your situation.
FAQ
Can personal trainers claim gym membership fees?
Usually no if the fee is really for your own private fitness. Fees paid to access a venue so you can deliver client sessions may be treated differently depending on the facts.
Can I claim resistance bands and training gear?
Usually yes if the equipment is used in earning your trainer income and not mainly for private use.
Can trainers claim travel to clients?
Often yes where the travel is between clients or training venues for work, but not for ordinary commuting to your normal workplace.
Primary sources
- ATO fitness and sporting industry employees guide: https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals-and-families/income-deductions-offsets-and-records/in-detail/occupation-and-industry-specific-guides/e-k/fitness-and-sporting-industry-employees-income-and-work-related-deductions
- ATO working from home expenses: https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals-and-families/income-deductions-offsets-and-records/deductions-you-can-claim/working-from-home-expenses
- ATO cars, transport and travel: https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals-and-families/income-deductions-offsets-and-records/deductions-you-can-claim/cars-transport-and-travel
- ATO business deductions: https://www.ato.gov.au/businesses-and-organisations/income-deductions-and-concessions/income-and-deductions-for-business/deductions?trk=public_post_comment-text
General information only. Reviewed against ATO guidance accessed on 20 March 2026.
Related guides
If you want to compare similar claim categories, these guides are a useful next step: