OnlyFans Tax Deductions Australia | The Complete List for Creators

• OnlyFans creators can claim a wide range of business expenses, but every deduction must have a direct connection to earning your income.
• If an item is used for both personal and business purposes, you can only claim the business portion. Keep records to support your apportionment.
• The home office fixed rate method allows 67 to 70 cents per hour (depending on the year). Actual cost claims require more detailed records but can yield a larger deduction.
• The instant asset write-off lets you claim items under $20,000 in full in the year you buy them.
• The ATO can (and does) audit creator deductions. Keep receipts for five years.

The golden rule: it must be connected to earning your income

Before we go through the list, here’s the principle that underpins everything. To claim a deduction, the expense must be directly related to earning your OnlyFans income. That means:

• You must have spent the money yourself (not been reimbursed)
• The expense must be directly connected to earning your assessable income
• You need a record to prove it (receipt, invoice, bank statement)

If something is used for both personal and business purposes, you can only claim the business-use portion. The ATO calls this “apportionment” and they take it seriously.

Equipment and technology

This is usually the biggest deduction category for creators. Everything you buy specifically to produce content is potentially claimable.

Fully claimable (if used exclusively for content):

• Cameras, lenses, and camera bodies
• Ring lights, softboxes, and studio lighting
• Tripods, gimbals, and mounts
• Microphones and audio equipment
• Green screens and backdrops
• Props and set dressing used exclusively in content

Items under $20,000 can be claimed immediately under the instant asset write-off (for small businesses with turnover under $10 million). So if you buy a $3,500 camera for your OnlyFans business, you can deduct the full $3,500 in the year you purchase it.

Items over $20,000 are depreciated over their effective life. A professional camera has an ATO-determined effective life of around 4 years, so a $24,000 setup would be deducted at roughly $6,000 per year.

Example: You buy a Sony A7 IV ($3,800), a ring light ($250), a tripod ($180), and a backdrop ($120). Total: $4,350. If used 100% for OnlyFans content, you claim the full $4,350 as an immediate deduction.

Phones and computers

Your phone and laptop are almost certainly used for both personal and business purposes. You need to estimate the business-use percentage and claim only that portion.

Example: You buy a $1,800 iPhone and estimate you use it 60% for OnlyFans (shooting content, replying to fans, managing your account, checking analytics). You claim $1,800 x 60% = $1,080.

The ATO expects you to have a reasonable basis for your estimate. Keeping a usage diary for a representative four-week period is the most defensible approach.

Home office expenses

If you create content from home (which most OnlyFans creators do), you can claim a portion of your household running costs. There are two methods.

Method 1: Fixed rate (simpler)

Under the revised fixed rate method (PCG 2023/1), you claim 67 cents per hour worked from home (this rate is expected to increase to 70 cents per hour for 2024-25 onward, pending ATO confirmation). This covers: electricity and gas, phone and internet, stationery and computer consumables.

You can claim additional deductions on top of the fixed rate for items not covered by the 67c rate, such as: office furniture depreciation, a dedicated computer or monitor, and any technology used for your business.

Records required: You must log your actual hours worked from home for the entire year. No estimates allowed. A simple timesheet, calendar, or time-tracking app works.

Example: You work from your home studio 25 hours per week, 48 weeks per year. That’s 1,200 hours. At 67c per hour, your deduction is $804. Plus you claim the decline in value on your $900 standing desk ($900 / 10 years = $90 per year).

Method 2: Actual cost (more effort, potentially bigger claim)

If you have a dedicated room used exclusively as your studio or office, you can calculate the actual costs of running that space. This includes:

• Electricity (metered or apportioned by floor area)
• Internet (business-use proportion)
• Phone (business-use proportion)
• Furniture depreciation
• Cleaning costs for the dedicated area
• Insurance (proportional)

Example: Your studio occupies 15% of your home’s floor area. Your annual electricity bill is $2,400. You claim $2,400 x 15% = $360 for electricity alone. Add internet ($1,200/year x 70% business use = $840), cleaning ($50/month x 15% = $90), and furniture depreciation ($200), and the actual cost method gives you $1,490, compared to $804 under the fixed rate.

The actual cost method yields more but requires receipts for everything and a clear basis for apportionment.

Internet and phone

If you don’t use the fixed rate method, internet and phone are claimed separately based on business-use proportion.

Example: Your mobile plan costs $89/month ($1,068/year). You estimate 55% business use (managing OnlyFans, responding to fans, scheduling posts, researching content). Deduction: $1,068 x 55% = $587.

Your internet costs $99/month ($1,188/year). You estimate 40% business use. Deduction: $1,188 x 40% = $475.

If you use the 67c/hour fixed rate method, phone and internet are already included in that rate, so you can’t claim them again separately.

Wardrobe, styling, and appearance

This is where deductions get nuanced. The general rule: clothing you’d wear in everyday life is not deductible, even if you also wear it on camera. But items bought specifically for content that you wouldn’t normally wear can be claimed.

Claimable:

• Costumes, outfits, and lingerie purchased exclusively for content (not worn day-to-day)
• Wigs, hairpieces, and theatrical makeup
• Props that form part of a costume or set

Not claimable:

• Everyday clothing worn on camera
• General makeup and skincare products used in your regular routine
• Gym memberships (unless you can demonstrate a direct, primary connection to content production)
• Cosmetic surgery or procedures (the ATO treats these as private expenses)

The apportionment trap: If you buy $1,000 worth of lingerie and wear some of it in your personal life too, you can only claim the business portion. The ATO’s example in their own guidance specifically calls this out. Be honest about the split.

Example: You spend $2,400 per year on outfits exclusively for content (never worn outside shoots). Fully claimable: $2,400. You also spend $800 on makeup, 30% of which is used for content. Claimable: $800 x 30% = $240.

Software and subscriptions

Any software or subscription you pay for to create, edit, manage, or promote your content is deductible.

Common claims:

• Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Lightroom, Premiere Pro): ~$53/month = $636/year
• Canva Pro: ~$170/year
• Scheduling tools (Later, Hootsuite): $200 to $600/year
• Cloud storage (iCloud, Google Drive, Dropbox): $20 to $180/year
• Music licensing for videos: varies
• VPN services (if used for business): ~$100/year
• Accounting software (Xero, QuickBooks): $25 to $70/month
• OnlyFans promotion tools or analytics services
• Subscriptions to other creators’ accounts for research/competitive analysis

Example: Your total software subscriptions come to $1,800/year, all used exclusively for your OnlyFans business. Fully claimable: $1,800.

Platform fees and payment costs

While OnlyFans’ 20% commission is baked into the payout structure (you never “pay” it as a separate expense), other platform and payment costs are deductible:

• Wire transfer fees: OnlyFans charges a $30 fee per international bank transfer
• Currency conversion losses: If the AUD/USD rate moves unfavourably between earning and withdrawal, the loss is deductible
• Payment processor fees: If you use Paxum or another e-wallet, their fees are claimable
• Promotion costs on other platforms: Paid ads on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, or Reddit to drive traffic to your OnlyFans

Example: You receive 24 payouts per year at $30 per wire transfer = $720 in bank fees alone.

Marketing and advertising

Any spending to promote your OnlyFans account is deductible:

• Paid social media advertising (Instagram ads, Twitter promoted posts, TikTok ads)
• Website hosting and domain registration for a personal brand site
• Business cards or promotional materials
• Shoutout purchases from other creators
• SEO or marketing consultant fees

Professional services

Fees paid to professionals who help you run your OnlyFans business are fully deductible:

• Accountant and tax agent fees
• Legal advice related to your business (contracts, IP issues, privacy matters)
• Bookkeeper fees
• Financial advisor fees (if related to business income)

Example: Your annual accounting fees are $1,500 and your bookkeeper charges $200/month ($2,400/year). Combined deduction: $3,900.

Travel

If you travel specifically for content creation, those costs are claimable:

• Flights and accommodation for content shoots at specific locations
• Car expenses to travel to shoot locations, studios, or business meetings
• Uber/taxi to business-related destinations
• Meals while travelling overnight for content creation

Not claimable: Personal holiday travel where you happen to take a few photos. The primary purpose of the trip must be business-related. If a trip has a mixed purpose, you can only claim the business portion.

Car expenses can be claimed using the cents-per-kilometre method (88 cents per km for 2024-25, up to 5,000 km) or the logbook method (which requires keeping a 12-week logbook and then applying the business-use percentage to all car costs for the year).

Education and development

Courses and training that maintain or improve your skills in content creation are deductible:

• Online courses in photography, video editing, or marketing
• Business coaching or mentoring programs related to your creator business
• Industry conferences or events
• Books and resources on content strategy, business management, or tax

The course must relate to your current income-earning activity. A photography course to improve your content? Yes. A nursing degree? No.

What you CANNOT claim

To avoid problems with the ATO, here’s what’s off the table:

• Everyday clothing and personal grooming you’d use regardless of OnlyFans
• Cosmetic surgery or aesthetic procedures (the ATO considers these private)
• Gym memberships (unless you can show an exceptionally strong, direct link to content production, and even then it’s risky)
• Netflix, Spotify, or entertainment subscriptions (unless directly used in content production)
• Personal rent or mortgage (you can only claim the dedicated workspace portion via home office methods)
• Food and drink (unless travelling overnight for business)
• Fines and penalties (parking tickets, ATO penalties)
• Private health insurance (this is a separate tax offset, not a business deduction)

Record-keeping requirements

The ATO requires you to keep records for five years from the date you lodge your return. For each deduction, you need:

• A receipt or invoice showing what you bought, when, and how much
• Evidence of the business purpose (a brief note is fine)
• For apportioned items, your basis for calculating the business-use percentage

Digital records are perfectly acceptable. Photograph your receipts and store them in a cloud folder, or use an app like Dext, Hubdoc, or your accounting software’s receipt capture feature.

If the ATO audits your return and you can’t produce records, the deduction gets disallowed. No receipt, no claim. It’s that simple.