If your employer requires you to work from home, you may be able to claim tax relief on the additional household costs you incur. This relief is available to employees who must work from home as part of their employment — not those who simply choose to.
Important — the self-claim route closed on 6 April 2026. HMRC has abolished the employee self-claim for this relief from the 2026-27 tax year onward (new ITEPA 2003 s360B). You cannot open a new £6/week claim for 2026-27 yourself. You can still claim retrospectively for tax years 2022-23 through 2025-26 (each within its own 4-year deadline), and your employer can still pay you £6/week tax-free under the separate, unaffected s316A exemption — see “How to Claim” below for what actually remains available.
Who Qualifies? (governs backdated claims for 2022-23 to 2025-26)
You can claim working from home tax relief if:
- Your employment contract requires you to work from home, or
- Your job requires you to live far from the office and work from home, or
- There are no appropriate facilities available at your employer’s premises for you to do your job
You cannot claim if:
- You choose to work from home for convenience
- Your employer offers an office but you prefer working from home
- You are self-employed (different rules apply — you can deduct a proportion of home costs as business expenses)
The Flat Rate Method (£6 per Week)
The simplest way to claim is the HMRC-approved flat rate of £6 per week (£26 per month). You do not need to keep receipts or prove your actual costs. This gives you tax relief of:
| Tax Rate | Weekly Relief | Annual Relief |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Rate (20%) | £1.20 | £62.40 |
| Higher Rate (40%) | £2.40 | £124.80 |
| Additional Rate (45%) | £2.70 | £140.40 |
The flat rate is not a refund — it is tax relief. A Basic Rate taxpayer saves £62.40 per year, not £312.
Claiming Actual Costs
If your additional costs are higher than £6 per week, you can claim the actual additional costs of working from home. These include the extra amounts spent on:
- Heating and electricity used during working hours
- Metered water (if applicable)
- Business phone calls or a proportion of broadband (only the additional cost attributable to work)
You cannot claim for costs that would exist regardless of working from home, such as rent, mortgage payments, council tax, or the base cost of broadband you would have anyway. You must keep records and receipts to support your claim.
How to Claim
For 2026-27 onward, the self-claim route is closed. The only ongoing way to receive this money tax-free is Option 1 below, and only if your employer chooses to pay it.
Option 1: Through your employer (still available). Your employer can pay you up to £6 per week tax-free for working from home without any need to report it to HMRC — this employer exemption (ITEPA 2003 s316A) is unaffected by the 2026 change. Many employers already do this.
Option 2: Online via GOV.UK (backdated claims only, 2022-23 to 2025-26). If your employer never reimbursed you, you can still claim for one of these four historic tax years using the online P87 form for employment expenses — each year has its own 4-year deadline (e.g. the 2025-26 window closes 5 April 2030; 2022-23 closes 5 April 2027). You cannot open a claim for 2026-27 itself this way.
Option 3: Self Assessment (backdated claims only, 2022-23 to 2025-26). If you already file a Self Assessment return for one of the eligible historic years, include the claim on the employment pages for that year’s return.
Employer-Provided Equipment
If your employer provides equipment for home working — such as a laptop, monitor, desk, or chair — this is not a taxable benefit provided it is mainly used for work. You do not need to claim relief for employer-provided items, and they do not count toward your working from home claim.
Self-Employed Workers
Self-employed individuals can claim a proportion of household costs as business expenses. HMRC offers simplified expenses flat rates based on hours worked at home:
| Hours Worked per Month | Flat Rate per Month |
|---|---|
| 25–50 hours | £10 |
| 51–100 hours | £18 |
| 101+ hours | £26 |
Alternatively, you can calculate the actual proportion of household costs attributable to your business use (e.g., by room area and time spent working).
Key Takeaway
The employee self-claim is now closed for 2026-27 onward — HMRC abolished it from 6 April 2026. If you qualified but never claimed for 2022-23 through 2025-26, you still have time (deadlines run 5 April 2027 to 5 April 2030 depending on the year) to claim retrospectively. Going forward, the only way to receive this money tax-free is if your employer chooses to pay the £6/week directly — the employer exemption was not affected by this change.
Sources
- GOV.UK — Claim tax relief for your job expenses: working from home — confirms: “From the tax year 6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027, you will not be able to claim tax relief for working from home. You can still claim for the 4 previous tax years.”
- GOV.UK — Simplified expenses checker for self-employed