Government review of remote work should prioritise e-working tax relief – Currie

The Government has shown it is committed to the concept of remote work, but e-working tax relief in its current form requires change to support more workers, a Fine Gael Senator has said.

Emer Currie, Fine Gael’s Seanad Spokesperson on for Work/Life Balance and Employment Affairs, said, “There will be investment in 10,000 digital and co-working spaces and €30 million for the creation of jobs in regions across the country as part of Budget 2021.

“All of these commitments are incredibly positive and the first step to transformative change in how we work and live, but as Winter comes with rising household bills and little choice but to work from home for the foreseeable future, the e-working tax relief needs more attention from the Government.

“The message from the Government should go out to employers that if you can afford to pay an allowance to your employees to help with winter utilities, you should.

“Workers can benefit up to €3.20 per day without paying any tax, PRSI or USC, if their employer pays an allowance towards household utility expenses for working from home. This is a sizable chunk in a worker’s pay packet each month tax-free and is fantastic if it can be availed of. Not enough employers know about it and that they can claim a portion of it back depending on how much tax they pay – usually about an eight.

“However, it would be premature to call for employers to make this payment mandatory just yet, as it is still a significant additional expense at a time when many employers haven’t seen the full potential of remote working in terms of reduced costs. Employers are still paying fixed costs each month for offices not being used while dealing with significant falls in revenue.

“The last thing we want right now is to put employers off remote working by adding an additional expense on top of them without proper consultation. Therefore, I am calling for a full review of e-working tax relief and an awareness campaign targeting employers.

“In the meantime, the Government should prioritise the individual e-working tax relief as part of their interdepartmental review of remote work. If your employer doesn’t pay you an allowance, you are entitled to tax relief on 10% of your electricity and heat and since the Budget, 30% for broadband. But it isn’t a refund, it’s tax relief, which means the 10% or 30% comes off your taxable income. In reality, the net benefit is quite a bit less and you won’t see the benefit until next year’s tax bill, which is too late for people struggling with bills now.

“While any reduction in tax is positive, if we are to embrace remote working as a lifestyle choice and if we want to incentivise remote work, then this tax allowance that was created long before the growth of remote work must be revised. Meaningful tax relief is provided to commuters via taxsaver tickets, so why not for working from home when getting a balance of both commuting to work and working from home is what people want?,” Senator Currie concluded.