I moved out to Sydney with my company last August on a 457 visa and have been told by some of my ex-pat friends that I am entitled to LAFHA and that it could make a big difference to me financialy.

I approached my company and they said that they know nothing about it but if I was indeed correct they would see what they could do.

I have been looking around and have not been able to find out exactly what I require but I did go back to the company with some details around the entitlements etc and the response I got was that they do not do salary packaging.

Is LAFHA something that the company needs to package or is it just a claim that needs to be made as tax relief? Does anyone think that it is worthwhile taking additional advice to try and persuade my company or should I stop trying to flog a dead horse.

Any help would be appreciated as I am very confused....

Am looking into this as well....think you should really try and push it as it will make a big difference to the salary package.
The ATO has some new legislation on their website as to when claiming it would not be allowed - www.ato.com.au search for living away from home allowance! As far was I can tell from the info if you were recruited for your current position once in Oz then you are on dodgy ground however if recruited from the UK you should defintely get it.
It is something your company needs to sign up to though and a financial advisor might be a good idea to make your case properly.

I arrived from the UK on a 4 year work permit to take up a new position with a new company, and my company arranged for me to be on LAFHA.
It makes a significant difference to your salary ($1500 per month nett for me) so you should pursue it with your company (it costs them nothing to do this!!).

various people from our company have claimed this at the end of the tax year without reference to their employer. They have just seen a tax agent whi is familiar with this. If you want details of the guy they used then e-mail me.... themossworldtour@hotmail.com

The LAFHA is not a deduction you can claim without your employer being aware. It is an allowance that can be paid tax free by an employer to employees who are living away from their "usual place of abode".

More details are here:
http://www.gomatilda.com/news/article.cfm?articleid=61

Best regards.