Treasury confirms tax exemption for reimbursed home office expenses

20 May 2020

The Treasury has confirmed that a temporary tax exemption for coronavirus (COVID-19)-related reimbursed home office expenses has taken effect.

The exemption and national insurance disregard will ensure that home office expenses do not attract tax and national insurance contribution (NIC) liabilities where reimbursed by an employer. The exemption is designed to support employees who are working from home as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and need to purchase home office equipment.

To be eligible for relief, the expenditure must meet two conditions:

• The equipment must be obtained for the sole purpose of enabling an employee to work from home as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The provision of the equipment would have been exempt from income tax if it had been provided directly to the employee by or on behalf of the employer.

The tax exemption has effect from 16 March 2020, the date the government recommended working from home, until 5 April 2021.