E. Tax regulations for home office
Many employees were in the home office in the calendar year 2024 as well. Therefore, the question arises as to which expenses can be asserted as income-related expenses in the employee tax assessment.
Note
As a rule, expenses incurred in your private life (e.g. costs for food and everyday necessities) cannot be asserted in your employee tax assessment.
Work room
If the conditions for a fiscal home office are met, you can claim the expenses as income-related expenses. If the prerequisites are not met, assertion of income-related expenses is not possible.
Example 1
An accountant working from home has set up a home office in her apartment, which she uses exclusively for professional purposes. She does not have a workplace available at her employer's office. Given the nature of her work, the home office is absolutely necessary and constitutes the focal point of her entire professional activity. In this case, there is a fiscal home office, and the costs can be claimed in the employee tax assessment.
Example 2
The accountant of a publishing house works from home twice a week. On her home office days, she uses a room in her apartment as a workspace, for which she purchased a desk and an office chair. She also has her own workspace at her place of work. In this case, a fiscal home office does not exist, so she cannot claim these costs in the employee tax assessment. However, if the desk and chair are ergonomically suitable, and other conditions are met, she may claim their costs in the employee tax assessment.
Internet and telephone costs
The costs (e.g. provider fee, online fees) for work-related use of a private internet connection are deductible to the extent of the actual work-related use. If it is not possible to precisely differentiate between work-related and private use, the apportionment of costs must be estimated and a private portion subtracted. The costs for work-related telephone calls from your private telephone can be asserted to the actual extent as income-related expenses.
Computer
If you worked from home in the calendar year 2024 and used your private computer and accessories (e.g. monitor, keyboard, computer mouse, printer, modem, headset) on a pro rata basis for professional purposes as well, the expenses include income-related expenses. The extent of professional use must be credibly demonstrated. These income-related expenses will be reduced by the home office flat rate.
Ergonomically suitable furniture
If you have worked at least 26 home office days, you can claim your expenses for ergonomically suitable furniture (e.g. desk, swivel chair, lighting) amounting to a maximum of €300 as income-related expenses in 2024 (code 158 in Form L 1 2024). If you spent more than €300 in 2024, you can automatically claim the excess amount in 2025.
Home office flat rate
If less than €3 per home office day was taken into account by the employer as a home office flat rate, then the difference can be automatically claimed in your employee tax assessment. The prerequisite for this is that your employer has to enter the home office days or the home office flat rate in the payslip.
A home office flat rate amounting to a maximum of €3 per day is available for a home office day for up to 100 home office days. The flat rate is limited to €300 in the calendar year 2024.
Example
If your employer has taken into account €2 per day for 100 home office days (= €200), then you will receive €100 in your employee tax assessment in 2024 (maximum amount of €300 minus €200 = €100).
Expenses for ergonomically suitable furniture and the home office flat rate do not count towards the general lump sum for income-related expenses of €132.
Digital work equipment
The expenses for digital work equipment (e.g. computers, printers, routers) must be entered under code 169 in Form L 1 2024. These expenses are automatically reduced by a possible home office flat rate. Only the exceeding part can be taken into account as income-related expenses.