Remote working has become a normal part of modern business, but the tax rules around working from home are changing significantly. From April 2026, employees will no longer be able to claim tax relief directly from HMRC for unreimbursed homeworking expenses.
Here’s a clear breakdown of the old rules, the temporary pandemic changes, and what employers and employees need to prepare for now.
Understanding the Previous Home Working Tax Relief Rules
For many years, employees who were required to work from home could claim tax relief for additional household expenses they personally paid for. These costs typically included:
- Increased electricity and heating bills
- Business-related telephone usage
- Other necessary work-from-home expenses
However, this relief was only available when employees had no choice but to work from home as part of their employment duties. Employees who chose to work remotely for convenience were not eligible.
Pandemic Tax Relief Changes Explained
During the COVID-19 pandemic, HMRC introduced temporary relaxations for the tax years 2020/21 and 2021/22.
Because millions of employees were forced to work remotely due to government restrictions, HMRC allowed individuals to claim homeworking tax relief even if remote work was not written into their employment contracts.
This temporary measure made it easier for employees to claim tax relief and resulted in a sharp increase in applications.
Why HMRC Is Changing the Rules Again
After the pandemic concessions ended, the original stricter rules technically returned. However, many employees continued claiming relief under the temporary pandemic guidelines.
HMRC compliance checks later revealed that a large number of claims did not meet the legal requirements. Reports suggested that more than half of submitted claims were ineligible under the original legislation.
As a result, HMRC decided to completely remove the option for employees to personally claim tax relief on unreimbursed homeworking expenses.
New Home Working Tax Rules from 6 April 2029
From 6 April 2026, employees will no longer be able to claim tax relief directly from HMRC for additional household expenses linked to working from home.
This applies even if:
- Homeworking is mandatory under the employment contract
- The employer does not provide office space
- The employee works remotely full-time
Going forward, any tax-efficient support for homeworking must come directly through employer-provided arrangements.
Tax-Efficient Ways Employers Can Support Remote Workers
Although employees will lose direct tax relief claims, employers can still provide several tax-efficient benefits for homeworking staff.
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