The government has launched a microservice to claim the £6 a week tax relief (equiv to £60 for lower rate and £125 for higher rate tax payers).

It seems that HMRC are giving people the full allowance even if you’ve only worked a week at home due to coronavirus – “We recognise that the working from home situation is very fluid this year, so we’re accepting claims for the full year’s expenses. That includes even if people have only worked from home for some of the year, to avoid needing to contact us if you have to work from home again.”

Details on the MSE blog: https://blog.moneysavingexpert.com/2020/04/martin-lewis–working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus–claim-p6-wk-/?utm_source=MSE_Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=20-Oct-20-50643815-10721&utm_campaign=nt-oneliners-one&utm_content=2

Microservice link: https://www.gov.uk/tax-relief-for-employees/working-at-home

Is this a stand alone claim or should it be bundled in at the end of the year with underpaid mileage and washing branded workwear at home?

The first Link is broken. I think it should be this MSE-Tax Relief for WFH

its worth noting you can also claim tax back on any equipment you have bought purely for work use at home. For example, I bought a monitor, webcam and mic – maybe £500 all in – not a bad saving

Thanks

I did this the other day, straight forward process and just adjusts your tax code accordingly. You need to re apply in 2021 if you are still working from home after April 2021

And if you don’t think you need it, claim it anyway and give the money to a local food bank.

I’ve worked at home permanently for about 5 years. I think this is different to the issue above

Can you claim this for all of those previous years?

If so, has anyone got a link?

Is there an offset against savings on commuting costs though?

It’s £6 per week, none receipted, was less for previous tax years – I think £4. Took me 10 minutes to add it.

I’ve probably spent about £100 on additional equipment to work from home – second hand monitor, second hand docking station, large mouse mat (glass table) and monitor risers – you can claim these so long as receipted.

No offset against commuting costs. Don’t forget your heat and light will go up.

I don’t think commuting costs come into it at all do they? Commuting costs are not counted as costs of doing business. Its a cost the individual has to bear…its not for work purposes. If you choose to live 100 miles away from your place of work instead of walking distance then that’s your look out. You wouldn’t expect your salary to be reduced in consideration of not having to pay for commuting costs. Though I’m sure some companies would try that one on.

HMRCs guidance to staff references commuting costs, that’s why I asked.

If you do Self Assessment, you have to claim through that process.

I’m like ElShalimo, been at home since 2015. I shall have a look at this now.

This is to cover “emergency” working at home costs due to COVID, not working at home because you choose to.  There are no doubt other expenses you can claim when working at home generally, but this isn’t the service you need for that.

Great PSA, thank you 🙂

Would this put you on the self assessment register for next year?

Thanks for sharing this one, very simple once logged on and ID verified.

Cheers.
Managed to drag up my gateway ID from email inbox and took a couple of minutes to say yes please I’d like some money.

Would this put you on the self assessment register for next year?

No.

Better than nowt, but not quite matching the extra £20pm my gas and electric bill has gone up!

Better than nowt, but not quite matching the extra £20pm my gas and electric bill has gone up!

How does that compare to your monthly commuting costs? We are both saving around £100 a month in petrol and parking, let alone wear and tear. £20 a month utilities plus an extra 1-2 hours a day not stuck in traffic is feeling a pretty good deal ChezMC

Better than nowt, but not quite matching the extra £20pm my gas and electric bill has gone up!

I just wear a jumper. No chance of me putting on the heating when no-one else is in the house!

I just wear a jumper. No chance of me putting on the heating when no-one else is in the house!

Ha ha, I’ve got two jumpers and a fleece jacket on (and even dug out my old fingerless gloves for the full Bob Cratchitt look). The conservatory (“office”) is basially the same temperature as outside. Heating goes on for an hour or so in the morning until I can’t see my breath 🙂

How does that compare to your monthly commuting costs? We are both saving around £100 a month in petrol and parking, let alone wear and tear. £20 a month utilities plus an extra 1-2 hours a day not stuck in traffic is feeling a pretty good deal ChezMC

I knew someone would say this. That’s great, but I ride to work every day normally, so I’m saving nothing beyond a bit of chain/tyre wear.

Saw this on MSE but sort of ruled it out as I’m home based irrespective of covid and described as such in my contract so I can claim travel costs on the odd occasion I go oop north to the office.

Is that wrong – is the £6 a week for all, not just for office staff asked to work from home due to covid?

Is that wrong – is the £6 a week for all

Surely you would fail at the *does your company compensate for working from home already” question on the application ?

Cheers for the PSA.
It took me a little while to initially sign up to the GOV.UK gateway, mainly due to the fact that I don’t have a photo-ID driving licence, my passport has expired several years ago, and I don’t have much of a credit history/profile that they could verify me against. In the end, answering all the questions in that Credit checking section with the one that said “It was more than 6 years ago” seemed to get me there. All done now. I have passed the link around a few people in the team at work too, all of whom are also WFH for the foreseeable future.

Is that wrong – is the £6 a week for all, not just for office staff asked to work from home due to covid

Don’t quote me as I don’t work for the government, but it’s designed to assist those of us who usually have a place (or places) of work to go to, but have been asked to work from home for a period by our employers due to COVID-19, but haven’t been compensated in any way for the period.

I have no doubt that many who work from home anyway will claim, and successfully get their tax threshold lowered for the 2020/21 financial year…

I also have no doubt that many who have not worked from home at all during the COVID-19 pandemic will claim successfully too, no doubt… 🤷🏻‍♂️

What I do know is that HMRC often take a long time to get people’s tax affairs in order and accurate, but they always get there in the end… So if you’ve claimed for something you’re not entitled to, expect to have to pay it back in the future!

Anyway, claimed myself, took less than 5 mins… Just gonna get the missus to claim too as she’s still working from home even now, and doesn’t expect not to be any time soon!

I’ve been working from home the past 20+ years and been claiming this for years too, it just adjusts your tax code accordingly.

Thanks v much. This looks like they have made this much easier than it seemed a few months ago. All signed up.

Nice one OP. Quick job if you already have Gov Gateway ID.

Well it looks like I don’t exist according to the passport number and tax amounts I entered.

Thanks for the PSA there OP, all completed rather easily I have to say!

Well it looks like I don’t exist according to the passport number and tax amounts I entered

Great news if you can then persuade HMRC to pay back all the tax you have ever paid 😉