You can claim up to £125 if you’ve been required to work at home - here’s how

HMRC has launched a tool which can help those working at home claim back additional expenses.

Employees can claim tax relief based on the rate of tax they pay - and you could recoup up to £125 per year.

How it works

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Gov.uk says, “You may be able to claim tax relief for additional household costs if you have to work at home on a regular basis, either for all or part of the week. This includes if you have to work from home because of coronavirus (Covid-19).”

However, you cannot claim tax relief if you choose to work from home.

Additional costs include things like heating, metered water bills, home contents insurance, business calls or a new broadband connection. They do not include costs that would stay the same whether you were working at home or in an office, such as mortgage interest, rent or council tax.

The online portal launched on 1 October.

How much can I get?

You can either claim tax relief on:

  • £6 a week from 6 April 2020 (for previous tax years the rate is £4 a week) - you will not need to keep evidence of your extra costs
  • the exact amount of extra costs you’ve incurred above the weekly amount - you’ll need evidence such as receipts, bills or contracts

Those paying the standard tax rate of 20 per cent, can claim £1.20 per week (tax relief on £6 a week), while those paying the higher rate of 40 per cent, can claim £2.40 per week.

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Additional rate taxpayers who pay 45 per cent can claim £2.70 a week.

How can I check I’m eligible and claim tax relief?

You can check if you’re eligible and use the online tool on the Gov.uk website.

HMRC has said you can claim tax relief from the date you began working from home.

If your application is approved, then your online portal will adjust your tax code for the 2020 to 2021 tax year. You will then receive the tax relief directly through your salary and this will continue until March 2021.

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HMRC’s interim director general of customer services, Karl Khan, said, “We want everyone to get the money that they are entitled to, so we’ve made the online service as easy to use as we can - it takes just a few minutes to make a claim.”

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