Working from Home Tax Relief Ireland: Claim & Calculate

If you’ve been working from home in Ireland, you might be wondering whether you can get some tax back on your electricity and broadband bills. The good news is that Revenue’s Remote Working Relief lets you claim a portion of those costs — and filing is simpler than you might expect, especially with our step-by-step guide to calculating and submitting your claim.

Eligible expenses: Electricity, heating, broadband · Claimable percentage (since 2022): 30% for electricity/heating and 30% for broadband · Tax relief rate: Applied at your highest marginal tax rate (e.g., 20% or 40%) · Claim method: Online via Revenue’s myAccount

Six key facts summarise the basics of Ireland’s Remote Working Relief — a scheme that has evolved significantly since the pandemic.

How do I claim tax relief from working from home in Ireland?

Revenue has streamlined the process into two main paths: a current-year claim using the Receipts tracker, or an end-of-year return via myAccount. Both routes require the same basic information.

1. Step 1: Gather necessary information
   • Your PPSN and Revenue myAccount login
   • Details of the number of days you worked from home during the year
   • Copies of your electricity, heating and broadband bills showing amounts paid (Revenue (tax authority) guidance)
2. Step 2: Log into Revenue’s myAccount
   • Go to the ‘Tax Credits and Reliefs’ section, select ‘Your job’, then choose ‘Remote Working Relief’ (Revenue (tax authority) instructions)
   • Alternatively, use the Receipts tracker in ‘PAYE Services’ to upload bill images for a current-year claim
3. Step 3: Submit an income tax return
   • Complete and submit the Income Tax Return with your days and costs (Revenue (tax authority))
   • If you haven’t uploaded receipts, retain original bills for six years (Revenue (tax authority))
4. Step 4: Receive your refund
   • Relief is applied as a tax credit and reduces your tax liability, typically paid directly into your bank account within a few weeks (Revenue (tax authority))

PAYE workers who follow the steps and keep digital receipts can expect the refund to land in their bank account within 2–4 weeks.

How much tax refund will I get for working from home?

The refund amount isn’t a fixed figure — it depends on your utility costs, the proportion of home days, and your marginal tax rate. Most PAYE workers see between €60 and €200 back per year, but higher earners with significant bills can receive more.

Calculating the refund: an example

• Annual electricity/heating bill: €1,000
• Work-from-home days: 230 out of 365 ≈ 63%
• Claimable cost: 30% of (€1,000 × 63%) = €189
• If you pay 40% tax: refund = €189 × 40% = €75.60 (Coffey & Co (Irish tax advisors))

Factors affecting the refund amount

• Your marginal tax rate (20% or 40%) — higher rate equals larger refund
• The number of days you work from home (more days = higher proportion)
• Whether your employer already pays a daily remote working allowance — that allowance reduces your claimable cost (Revenue (tax authority))

This comparison shows that the employer allowance can fully offset the employee relief, so workers should check their pay slips before claiming.

How much can I claim on tax for WFH?

Revenue caps the claimable percentage at 30% of eligible utility costs, but only for the portion of those costs attributable to your home office days. Broadband is treated separately but under the same 30% rule.

Eligible proportion of utility bills

• You can claim 30% of electricity and heating costs for the days you worked from home (Revenue (tax authority) rates)
• The calculation: total annual bill × (days WFH / 365) × 30%
• Only the additional costs incurred because you work from home are eligible

Broadband costs

• Broadband charges are also claimable at 30% of the cost attributable to home days (Revenue (tax authority))
• If you have a combined phone/broadband package, only the broadband portion qualifies
• You cannot claim if your employer provides a broadband allowance that covers the full cost

Why this matters: Many workers overlook broadband, which can add another €30–€50 to the refund. But the relief is only on extra costs – Revenue expects you to subtract any employer reimbursement first.

What working from home expenses can you claim on tax?

Revenue’s list is deliberately narrow — designed to cover the core rise in household costs caused by remote work, not general home upkeep.

Electricity and heating

• These are the main claimable utilities, applied to working days only (Revenue (tax authority))
• Apportion them based on the number of days you worked from home vs total days in the year

Broadband

• Broadband charges are separately claimable at 30% of the cost attributable to home days
• If your broadband is bundled with TV or phone, only the broadband element of the bundle qualifies

Other expenses?

• Revenue has not explicitly clarified whether minor items like printer ink, stationery, or internet security software qualify (Revenue (tax authority) FAQ)
• In practice, most tax advisors treat these as non-claimable for the basic employee relief (Bonkers.ie (financial comparison guide))

Items not claimable

• Mortgage interest, rent, home insurance, general repairs, and council tax are explicitly excluded (Citizens Information (official information service))
• Equipment like laptops may be covered under separate capital allowances if not provided by your employer

Understanding this rule helps workers avoid accidental overclaims that could trigger Revenue audits.

How much can I claim if I work from home full time?

Full-time remote workers can claim for every day they work from home — typically around 260 days per year — which means the proportion of bills used in the calculation is close to 100%. But the 30% cap on costs still applies.

Full-time vs part-time calculation

• Full-time: you can apply 30% of your annual utility costs (since nearly all days are WFH days) (Revenue (tax authority) rules)
• Part-time: you apportion the 30% by the ratio of WFH days to total days
• Example: 100 WFH days out of 260 working days = 38% of the year’s eligible costs

Example for full-time remote workers

• Annual electricity and heating: €1,200
• Full-time remote (say 240 days WFH, but effectively all working days are at home): €1,200 × 30% = €360 claimable cost
• At 40% tax: refund = €360 × 40% = €144 per year (Coffey & Co (Irish tax advisors))

The implication: Even full-time remote workers face a real-world cap because the 30% rule and marginal rate limit the back – you won’t get a windfall, but the relief meaningfully offsets about 12% of your annual utility bills.

“You must work from home for at least part of the year. Relief is given at your highest rate of tax. The simplest way is to claim through myAccount.”

Revenue – Remote Working Relief page (tax authority)

“The relief is only on additional costs incurred by working from home. If your employer gives you a remote working allowance, you must deduct it from your claim.”

Citizens Information – eWorking and tax relief (official information service)

“A common mistake is claiming 30% of the full annual bill instead of apportioning it for days worked at home. Always divide by the number of days you actually worked from home.”

Switcher.ie – practical guide (consumer finance guide)

For the majority of Irish PAYE workers, claiming the Remote Working Relief takes less than 20 minutes online and can return €60–€150 per year. The real value isn’t the refund itself — it’s the principle that Revenue recognises your home office costs as legitimate work expenses. For anyone earning €40,000 or more and working from home at least two days a week, the trade-off is clear: file the claim, or leave money on the table that your employer’s allowance doesn’t cover.

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