Forestry Attachment Tax and Depreciation

General information, not advice

This page summarises publicly available Australian Taxation Office guidance as general information. It is not tax advice, it does not account for your circumstances, and thresholds and legislation status change. Confirm your own position with your accountant before you time a purchase around any of it.

The short answer

The instant asset write-off threshold is $20,000 per asset. Most forestry attachments cost more than that, so the asset joins the small business pool and depreciates at 15% in the first year and 30% each year after. The test for either is that the asset is first used or installed ready for use within the income year — not that it was ordered or paid for.

Where the threshold currently sits

Stated with its legislative status, because the status is the part that keeps moving.

The instant asset write-off threshold is $20,000 per asset. In the 2026-27 Budget it was announced to be made permanent from 1 July 2026 for small businesses with aggregated turnover under $10 million. As at mid-2026 the enabling legislation had not passed Parliament, and until it does the standing legislated threshold for assets first used from 1 July 2026 is $1,000.

That gap between announcement and legislation is why this page states the status rather than just the number. A budget announcement is a statement of intent; it is the legislation that determines what you can actually claim, and planning a June purchase around an unlegislated threshold is a risk your accountant should price rather than you.

Source: Australian Taxation Office — Instant asset write-off for eligible businesses

The small business pool, which is what usually applies

For an attachment costing more than the threshold, this is the mechanism.

Year	Pool rate	What it means in practice
First year	15%	A part-year rate regardless of when in the year the asset entered the pool.
Each year after	30%	Applied to the closing pool balance, so the deduction tapers over time.

Percentage of cost, from the 15% and 30% pool rates alone. Illustrates a single asset with no other pool movements; your pool holds other assets and your accountant works the real figure.

The practical consequence for a buyer is that the deduction arrives over several years rather than in one. An attachment bought in the expectation of an immediate write-off, at a price above the threshold, will not produce the cash-flow effect the buyer had in mind — and that misunderstanding is common enough to be worth checking before the order goes in rather than after.

The timing trap

The single most expensive misunderstanding in this area, and it lands squarely on imported equipment.

Ordered is not installed

The test is that the asset is first used or installed ready for use within the income year, not ordered or paid for. An imported attachment sitting on a wharf on 30 June does not qualify.

01
Lead times are long
European-manufactured attachments on sea freight are measured in weeks, not days. A June order is routinely a July or August asset, and the deduction moves with it.
02
“Installed ready for use” includes the bracket
An attachment that has arrived but has no machine-specific mounting bracket fitted is arguably not ready for use. Factor bracket lead time into the timing, not just the attachment.
03
Plan backwards from the date
If the timing genuinely matters to you, work backwards from 30 June through installation, freight and manufacturing, and have your accountant confirm the position before you commit.

How hiring compares

Different mechanism, and at low utilisation often the better commercial answer regardless of tax.

Hire charges are generally an operating expense deductible as incurred. There is no asset to depreciate, no threshold question and no timing trap. That simplicity is a real advantage, but it is a secondary one: the primary question is still whether your annual hours justify ownership at all.

The tax treatment should follow the commercial decision rather than drive it. A deduction reduces the cost of an asset; it does not make an unnecessary asset free. Work through hire, buy or subcontract first, then take the answer to your accountant.

Before you time a purchase around tax

Questions for your accountant

Current threshold and its legislative status
Your aggregated turnover and eligibility
Whether the attachment sits above or below the threshold
Whether bracket and hose kit form part of the asset cost
Expected date of first use or installation ready for use
Realistic freight and installation lead time
Pool balance implications in later years
Treatment of wear parts and rebuilds
Whether hire would suit your position better
Any state-based incentives that may apply

Frequently asked questions

Can I instantly write off a forestry attachment?

Usually not, because most forestry attachments cost well above the threshold. The instant asset write-off threshold is $20,000 per asset, and the 2026-27 Budget announced it would be made permanent from 1 July 2026 for small businesses with aggregated turnover under $10 million. As at mid-2026 the enabling legislation had not passed Parliament, and until it does the standing legislated threshold for assets first used from 1 July 2026 is $1,000.

What happens if the attachment costs more than the threshold?

It joins the small business pool and depreciates at 15% in the first year and 30% in each year after. For most forestry attachments this, rather than an immediate write-off, is the relevant mechanism — which is worth knowing before you plan a purchase around an expected deduction.

Does the deduction depend on when I pay for it?

No, and this is the trap. The test is that the asset is first used or installed ready for use within the income year, not that it was ordered or paid for. An imported attachment sitting on a wharf on 30 June does not qualify, however long ago the deposit was paid.

Is a turnkey kit part of the asset cost?

Generally the cost of getting an asset ready for use forms part of its cost for depreciation purposes, which would typically include a machine-specific mounting bracket and hose kit supplied with the attachment. How that applies to your purchase is a question for your accountant, and it is worth asking because it can affect whether a purchase sits above or below a threshold.

Should I time a purchase around the end of the financial year?

Only if the tool is one you were going to buy anyway. The deduction reduces the cost of an asset; it does not make an unnecessary asset free. If the utilisation case is not there, a tax-driven purchase is an attachment sitting idle in the yard with a smaller invoice attached. Work the utilisation decision first and let the tax treatment follow it.

Are wear parts treated differently to the attachment?

Consumables and repairs are generally revenue expenses rather than capital, and are typically deductible in the year incurred rather than depreciated. Teeth, chains and blades normally fall in that category. Where a rebuild is substantial enough to be an improvement rather than a repair, the treatment can differ — another one for your accountant.

Does hiring change the tax position?

Hire charges are generally an operating expense deductible as incurred, with no asset to depreciate and no threshold question. That simplicity is a genuine, if secondary, argument for hiring at low utilisation, and it sits alongside the commercial case rather than replacing it.

Where can I check the current thresholds myself?

The Australian Taxation Office publishes current guidance on the instant asset write-off and simplified depreciation for small business. Thresholds and legislation status change, so check the current position rather than relying on any summary, including this one. The link is on the sources page.

Where to go next

Hire, buy or subcontractThe commercial decision that should come before the tax one.

What attachments costThe five cost lines the deduction applies against.

SourcesWhere the ATO guidance summarised here comes from.

Request a quoteGet a written figure to take to your accountant.

Tax treatment, stated accurately