Revenue are taking the Mick when it comes to the amount an employer is allowed to cover (3.20) for working from home expenses vs an what employee is allowed to claim from Revenue. Using Revenue's example in section 2.4 of Tax and Duty Manual Part 05-02-13, they would allow up to a €288 payment from an employer for 90 days e-workong, compared to €43 for a claim by an employee for the same period.
I welcome the fact that Revenue have provided clear guidance on how to calculate a claim, however it's not clear why there would be such a large variance between the two scenarios.
Furthermore, in my view, only allowing 10% of the utility bills to be attributable for the working days is laughable. In my situation, most of the heat and light would be used during a working day at home (an extra 8 hours) in order to be comfortable. Its unreasonable to assert that only an office space can be considered and not common areas such as bathroom and kitchen, which should also be lighted and heated appropriately during a working day.
100% agree with that statement, however we also have to look beyond the current lockdown. In my own case, for the whole of 2019 I worked from home office 2 days per week, and I will be continuing to do so after the lockdown. So for myself, it's not an insignificant cost to give consideration to, and accumulated over a couple of years, it is quite a lot of extra cost.Consider this also: what was the alternative, during lockdown, to you working at home? If the answer is at home, not working, then how much is the incremental cost of light & heat through the fact that you were working while at home on lockdown, if you would otherwise have been there anyway...
That's not true at all, this tax credit existed before covid-19. From Revenue:It should also be pointed out that you can only claim this tax credit if your employer has left you with no choice but to work from home.
If you choose to do so, for convenience, you are not entitled to the credit . ( all employees working from home because of COVID-19 are deemed to be entitled).
That's no true at all. If you choose to work from home, then you are working from home and you are entitled to claim. It's quite clear, in the manual, that if you have an arrangement to work from home on either a part or full time basis, then you are a "e-working"It is only applicable if you have to work from home , not if you choose to .
Finally, in relation to working from home 2 days a week, unless this a formal arrangement and not something you simply have a choice or flexibility around, then it wouldn’t qualify as e-working.
How much heat are you using? I haven't turned the heating on once during the day in the last two months.Furthermore, in my view, only allowing 10% of the utility bills to be attributable for the working days is laughable. In my situation, most of the heat and light would be used during a working day at home (an extra 8 hours) in order to be comfortable. Its unreasonable to assert that only an office space can be considered and not common areas such as bathroom and kitchen, which should also be lighted and heated appropriately during a working day.
In the depths of winter, it would be on all day when working from home. Lights on as well.How much heat are you using? I haven't turned the heating on once during the day in the last two months.
I take umbrage with the fact that a payment of up to 3.20 would be extremely generous but you would have a hard time if you were to claim anything close to that from Revenue. Why such a discrepancy?
It's €640 for a worker working full time (e.g. 200 days) from home, free of tax, prsi and usc. That is equivalent to an extra €1,333 salary if you are on the highest tax and usc rates. Not to be sniffed at.I don't think €3.20 a day would alter my outlook!
It's €640 for a worker working full time (e.g. 200 days) from home, free of tax, prsi and usc. That is equivalent to an extra €1,333 salary if you are on the highest tax and usc rates. Not to be sniffed at.
Apparently this is going to change to encourage people to work from home so I think you can expect a significant increase on the tax credit.
I actually knew that you would throw a similar figure out, but it’s flawed logic. For starters, a lot of people might be able to do a lot of their work remotely, 1 - 3 days per week, but not everything. So, for the majority of people, it’s some fraction of that.