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Working From Home / Home As Office Expenses

This Content Was Last Updated on March 10, 2024 by Jessica Garbett

 

If you work from home then you can normally claim a tax deduction.

There are differing rules for Self Employed – Sole Traders and Business Partners – and Employees, Including Company Directors.

 

Sole Traders and Partners

Simplified Expenses

Under HMRCs “simplified expenses” regime, you can claim:

  • £10 a month if you use your home between 25 and 50 hours a month
  • £18 a month if you use your home between 51 and 100 hours a month
  • £26 a month if you use your home more than 101 hours a month

Don’t worry if you don’t work 25 hours a month at home – you can still make a claim, but it has to be based on actual or estimated costs of working from home. HMRC may ask you to justify your calculation, but in practice its unlikely. In all honesty a fixed £120 a year is unlikely to cause problems, and HMRCs internal manuals specifically tell Tax Inspectors not to waste time checking small claims.

You can claim a business proportion of home phone/internet on top of these amounts.

Claiming Actual Costs

If you cannot use the standard allowances above, or feel your claim should be higher, then here is how to work out the actual costs:

Step 1 – Work out the costs of running your home, eg:

  • Mortgage interest (not capital repayments)
  • Rent
  • Council Tax
  • Water Rates
  • Insurance
  • Broadband
  • Electricity
  • Gas
  • Cleaning
  • Repairs

Step 2 – Apportion this – there is no precise method of doing so, but as a rule use either the number of rooms (excluding kitchens, bathrooms and halls) or a floor area basis. If a room is shared, eg private study and business study then take this account into the apportionment.

HMRCs internal guidance on such claims is at BIM 47815 et seq:
HMRC: BIM47800 – Specific deductions: use of home: contents

 

Employees including Company Directors

You Voluntarily Work From Home

Your employer is allowed to pay you a £6 week/£24 month allowance if you have to work from home. The £6 p/w applies from 6 April 2020 onward, previously it was £4 p/w.
HMRC – Expenses and benefits: homeworking

If your employer doesn’t pay this amount, you cannot normally make any claim from HMRC for expenses yourself (this rule was relaxed for 2019/20, 2021-22, 2022-23 due to Covid).

Employers may want to consider paying this amount to staff who regularly home work.

You Are Required By Your Employer To Work From Home

Where you are required to work from the rules differ:

  • Your employer is allowed to pay you a £6 week/£24 month as above
  • Alternatively you can claim this amount from HMRC on your Self Assessment.
    HMRC – Claim tax relief for your job expenses
  • A larger amount can be paid / claimed, but it would have to be worked out on the principles below

A requirement to work from home could arise from your Contract of Employment, or because you are a Company Director and your home is the business base. However:

  • Generally it should not be a matter of personal choice
  • There should not be other facilities, eg an employers office within reasonable travelling distance that you could work from
  • Substantive duties of the employment / directorship, not merely incidental ones, should take place at home

If you wish to claim actual expenses then the rules are:

 

Effect of claiming for Office at Home Expenses

Unless you have an area specifically dedicated for business use only, there should be no Capital Gains Tax or Business Rates concerns.

If you have people coming to the house, check with your insurers, and if relevant landlord or mortgage company.

For administration use only, planning consent should not be needed, and it almost certainly isn’t needed for an occasional business meeting.