If you deliver for Amazon Flex, tax is probably one of your biggest uncertainties. Do Amazon Flex drivers need an ABN? What about GST? Is a logbook required? And what deductions can you actually claim?
This guide covers everything you need to know about tax for Amazon Flex delivery drivers in Australia from your first registration obligations through to lodging your annual tax return, claiming every deduction you are entitled to, and generating a professional Profit and Loss statement.
Whether you deliver for Amazon Flex full-time or as a side income alongside another job, the same rules apply.
Do Amazon Flex Drivers Need an ABN?
Yes. All Amazon Flex drivers in Australia must hold an Australian Business Number (ABN).
When you deliver through Amazon Flex, you are classified as an independent contractor not an employee. That means you are running your own business (as a sole trader), and the ATO requires every sole trader and business in Australia to register for an ABN.
Your ABN is your business's public identification number. It is used on invoices, in your dealings with the ATO, and when registering for GST. Without one, you cannot legally operate as a contractor.
Applying for an ABN is free and takes around 10 minutes. You can apply directly through the Australian Business Register.
If you have already been driving without an ABN, you can apply now and backdate it to when you started driving. The ATO allows backdated ABN registration in most circumstances.
For a full guide to ABN and GST registration for gig workers, see ABN & GST Registration Guide for Gig Workers in Australia.
Do Amazon Flex Drivers Need to Register for GST?
This depends on whether you only do delivery, or whether you also do rideshare driving.
If You Only Do Delivery (No Rideshare)
If Amazon Flex delivery is your only gig platform activity and you do not do any rideshare driving, you are not required to register for GST unless your total ABN income exceeds $75,000 per year.
The ATO's $75,000 GST threshold applies to delivery and courier services. If you earn less than $75,000 per year from all sources on your ABN, you do not need to register for GST and you do not need to lodge BAS statements.
For most part-time Amazon Flex drivers, the $75,000 threshold will not be reached. However, if you also run another business or contracting work under the same ABN, all ABN income is counted together. If the combined total exceeds $75,000, you must register.
If You Do Amazon Flex and Rideshare
If you deliver for Amazon Flex and also drive for a rideshare platform such as Uber or DiDi, you must register for GST immediately regardless of your income level. This is because all ride-sourcing (rideshare) drivers in Australia are required to register for GST from the first dollar they earn. See the ATO's ride-sourcing rules here.
The critical point is that GST registration applies to all your ABN income once you are registered. That means GST applies to both your rideshare earnings and your Amazon Flex delivery earnings. You can claim GST credits on your delivery expenses to offset some of this, but the combination is important to understand before you start doing both types of driving.
How Do Amazon Flex Drivers Manage Their Taxes?
There are four key habits that make tax manageable for Amazon Flex drivers.
1. Keep a Logbook
If you use your car to make deliveries and want to claim your vehicle expenses — fuel, insurance, registration, depreciation, servicing, you must keep an ATO-compliant logbook.
The logbook records the work-related portion of your vehicle use. Without one, you are limited to the ATO's cents-per-kilometre method, which caps your deduction at 5,000 kilometres per year. The current rates are:
2024-25 financial year: 88 cents per kilometre (maximum $4,400)
2025-26 financial year: 88 cents per kilometre (maximum $4,400)
See the ATO's cents per kilometre method here.
If you drive more than a few thousand kilometres for work, the logbook method will give you a significantly larger deduction than the cents-per-kilometre method. The logbook records your actual vehicle costs and applies your work-use percentage to them.
ATO logbook requirements:
Must cover a continuous 12-week period
One entry per shift (not per delivery — a 3-hour shift with 15 deliveries is one logbook entry)
Record the date, start odometer reading, end odometer reading, and purpose (Amazon Flex delivery)
Start and end at home (your kilometres from home to first pickup and from last delivery back home are included)
You do not need to record private trips
Once you complete a valid 12-week logbook, it is valid for 5 years unless your driving pattern changes significantly.
For more on car depreciation and claiming vehicle costs, see Car Depreciation Guide for Rideshare Drivers in Australia.
2. Keep Records of Your Expenses
The ATO requires you to substantiate your deductions. You do not need to submit receipts with your tax return, but you must be able to produce them if the ATO asks. Keep:
Bank and card statements (the ATO accepts these as evidence)
Fuel receipts (or fuel tracking via a mileage app)
Phone bills (monthly statements showing your plan cost)
Receipts for equipment, insulated delivery bags, phone mount, dashcam, uniform
Toll account records showing tolls paid during work shifts
Platform earnings summaries downloaded from the Amazon Flex app
If you are registered for GST, you must hold a valid tax invoice for any single expense over $82.50 in order to claim the GST credit.
3. Set aside Money for Your Tax Bill
Unlike employment income, no tax is withheld from your Amazon Flex earnings. Amazon pays you the full amount and it is your responsibility to set aside money for tax.
As a rough guide, set aside approximately 15-20% of your net Amazon Flex earnings (after expenses) if it is your main source of income, or 25-30% if it is a second income on top of a salary. This buffer covers your income tax and any GST if applicable.
4. Generate a Profit & Loss Statement
A Profit & Loss (P&L) statement is the document that brings your Amazon Flex income and expenses together in a single professional report. It shows your gross income, your total expenses, and your net profit which is the figure that gets added to your tax return.
The easiest way to generate one is to use the Accounting Samurai P&L Generator.
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Instead of manually entering every transaction, you upload your bank and card statements and the AI automatically identifies your Amazon Flex income, categorises your expenses, and produces a formatted P&L statement in minutes.
You can also use our free Amazon Flex P&L Statement Template.
For more on why every delivery driver needs a P&L statement, see Why Every Delivery Driver Needs a Profit and Loss Statement.
What Tax Deductions Can Amazon Flex Drivers Claim?
As an independent contractor, you can claim deductions for all expenses that are directly related to earning your Amazon Flex income. The following are the most valuable deductions available to Amazon Flex drivers in Australia.
Vehicle Expenses
Your car is your most significant deductible expense. You can claim:
Fuel and oil
Servicing, repairs, and tyres
Registration and compulsory third-party insurance
Comprehensive insurance (work-related portion)
Car cleaning (if cleaning is required to maintain the vehicle for work)
Depreciation on the vehicle's purchase price (logbook method only)
Lease or hire payments if the vehicle is leased
If using the logbook method, all of these costs are multiplied by your work-use percentage. If using the cents-per-kilometre method, you cannot claim these items separately, the cents-per-km rate covers all vehicle costs.
See the ATO's guidance on motor vehicle deductions.
For the full deductions list including vehicle, see Uber Driver Tax Deductions List (Australia).
Phone and Data
Your mobile phone and data plan are deductible at the work-related portion of your usage. To calculate the percentage, keep a four-week usage diary noting how much of your phone activity relates to navigation, managing deliveries, and platform communication. Apply that percentage to your annual plan cost.
If you purchased a new phone to use for work, the handset itself is also deductible immediately if it cost under $300, or depreciated over 3 years if it cost more.
For a detailed guide, see Phone & Data Tax Deductions for Gig Workers in Australia.
Delivery Equipment
Equipment used for your Amazon Flex deliveries is deductible, including:
Insulated delivery bags and containers
Trolley or hand truck for large parcels
Safety vest or high-visibility clothing
Phone mount
Dashcam (work-related portion)
Car charger
Items under $300 can be claimed immediately. Items over $300 must be depreciated.
Platform Fees and Service Charges
Any service fees or commissions deducted by Amazon Flex from your earnings are a deductible business expense.
Tolls and Parking
Tolls paid while on an active delivery shift are fully deductible. Keep your toll account records (E-Tag or Go Via account statements) as substantiation. Parking fees paid during active deliveries — such as parking near a business to collect or deliver are also deductible.
Income Protection Insurance
If you hold income protection insurance as a self-employed contractor, the premiums are deductible. This is one of the more commonly overlooked deductions for gig workers.
See the ATO's guidance on insurance deductions.
Accounting and Bookkeeping Costs
The cost of using bookkeeping tools, tax preparation software, or accounting services for your gig business is deductible. This includes the Accounting Samurai P&L Generator and any tax agent fees you pay to lodge your return.
Tax agent fees are deductible in the year after you pay them (i.e., fees paid in 2025-26 are deductible in your 2026-27 return).
How to Declare Amazon Flex Income on Your Tax Return
Your Amazon Flex income is declared as business income in your annual income tax return. Here is the process:
Step 1: Download your annual earnings summary from the Amazon Flex app or driver portal. This shows your total gross payments received during the financial year.
Step 2: Generate your Profit & Loss statement using Accounting Samurai or by downloading and completing the Amazon Flex P&L Template.
Step 3: Log in to myGov and lodge through myTax, or provide your P&L to your registered tax agent. Your net profit (total income minus total deductions) is entered as business income in the Business Schedule section of your return.
Step 4: If you are registered for GST, your BAS lodgements (lodged quarterly) handle GST separately from your income tax return. The income figures in your tax return are GST-exclusive.
The ATO's deadline for self-lodgement is 31 October. If you use a registered tax agent, an extension to May of the following year may be available.
Important: Even if your Amazon Flex income is below the tax-free threshold, you must still lodge a tax return if you have earned income on your ABN. ABN holders have different lodgement obligations to regular employees. See the ATO's information on lodgement obligations.
For more on avoiding common tax return mistakes, see Common Gig Worker Tax Mistakes in Australia and How to Fix Them.
What is an Amazon Flex Earnings Statement and How Do I Get One?
Amazon Flex provides drivers with an earnings summary that shows your total payments for a given period. You can access this through the Amazon Flex app under the earnings section. However, this summary does not include your expenses or your net profit, it is just the gross income figure.
For a proper financial statement that shows both income and expenses, you need a Profit & Loss statement. The Accounting Samurai P&L Generator produces this from your bank statements automatically, no manual data entry required.
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For more on Amazon Flex earnings statements, see Amazon Flex Earnings Statement: How Drivers Can Show Real Income with a Profit & Loss Statement.
Should You Use a Tax Agent or Lodge Yourself?
For most Amazon Flex drivers with straightforward finances, self-lodgement through myTax is manageable especially if you have a clean P&L statement ready. However, a registered tax agent is worth considering if:
You are also doing rideshare and have GST/BAS obligations to manage
You have a vehicle to depreciate using the logbook method
Your combined income puts you in a higher tax bracket
You are behind on prior-year lodgements
For a detailed comparison, see Tax Agent vs DIY: What Should Australian Gig Workers Do at Tax Time?
Generate Your Amazon Flex P&L Statement with Accounting Samurai
At tax time or whenever you need to prove your income for a loan, rental, or mortgage application, you need a professional Profit & Loss statement.
Accounting Samurai's AI-powered P&L Generator does this automatically. Upload your bank and card statements, and the tool identifies your Amazon Flex income, categorises your expenses, and produces a formatted P&L statement in minutes. No accountant required.
You can also start with the free Amazon Flex P&L Template.
For more on proving income as a delivery driver, see Proof of Income for Uber Drivers: What Documents Work Best.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Amazon Flex drivers need to lodge a tax return if they earn under the tax-free threshold?
Yes. ABN holders must lodge a tax return regardless of whether their income is below the tax-free threshold. The standard lodgement rules for employees do not apply to sole traders operating on an ABN.
Can I claim my car expenses if I only drive for Amazon Flex a few hours per week?
Yes, but your deduction will be proportionally smaller. You can use the cents-per-kilometre method for up to 5,000 kilometres per year without a logbook, which is often the simpler option for part-time drivers. If you drive more than 5,000km for work, the logbook method will give you a larger deduction.
Does Amazon Flex report my income to the ATO?
Yes. Under the ATO's sharing economy reporting regime, all major platforms including Amazon Flex are required to report payment data to the ATO. Your declared income should match what the platform reported. See the ATO's sharing economy reporting information.
What happens if I don't declare my Amazon Flex income?
The ATO matches platform-reported income against lodged returns. Under-declaration or failure to lodge results in penalties and interest charges. For a full explanation, see What Happens If a Gig Worker Doesn't Lodge a Tax Return with the ATO?
How do I prove my Amazon Flex income to a bank or landlord?
A Profit & Loss statement is the most widely accepted proof of income document for self-employed contractors. Generate yours in minutes at Accounting Samurai Profit and Loss Statement Generator.
Related Reading
Uber driver tax deductions list (applies equally to delivery drivers)
Profit & Loss statements for gig workers: what they are and why they matter
