(2022)
Is a shared workspace a sufficient other workplace?
The term shared workspace does not refer to a lifeguard's workplace, but rather one or more desks in the company that are used by several employees on their office days as needed. Increasingly, employees are allowed to work from home on some days and only need to be present in the office on other days.
Alternatively, field staff carry out their work at clients' premises and their administrative tasks in the office. These employees often no longer have their own desk or office in the company. There are usually fewer desks than potential users. This can lead to a scramble for the last available desk. The question is whether employees can claim their home office for tax purposes because "no other workplace" is available to them in the company.
The Federal Fiscal Court has ruled that a shared workspace is generally "another workplace," but only if the employee can "actually use it to the extent and in the manner specifically required." If the use of the shared workspace is restricted, so that the employee has to carry out part of their work in their home office, home office costs up to 1.250 Euro per year can be deducted as business expenses (BFH ruling of 16.9.2015, IX R 19/14, published on 3.2.2016).
It must be checked whether a sufficient number of shared workspaces are available under the actual circumstances. If there is not a separate workspace for each user, it must be clarified whether, for example, official usage schedules or the possibility of private arrangements ensure that the employee can complete all their office work in the company office.
This ruling is relevant for all employees who, as part of modern office concepts, do not have a fixed workplace in the company and can choose their workspace freely when present. The tax judges sardonically point out in another ruling that "the taxpayer cannot be expected to 'try their luck' at different times of the day in search of a free desk or to compete with colleagues in the morning for the last available workspace" (FG Düsseldorf of 23.4.2013, 10 K 822/12 E).
However, it always depends on the individual case, and there is a recent negative ruling. The Hesse Fiscal Court recently decided that an employee has a workplace available at their employer's premises even if it is only a case of "desk sharing" (ruling of 30.7.2020, 3 K 1220/19).
The case: The claimant was employed as an IT project manager. In his income tax return, he claimed 1,250 Euro for a home office as business expenses. He based this on a concept from his employer. This concept includes the desk-sharing principle, whereby "due to the demand-oriented provision of workspaces, fixed allocation of individual workspaces to specific employees usually does not occur; this requires employees to share workspaces as a rule." The tax office did not recognise the expenses. The judges of the fiscal court agreed with this.
Reasoning: "Another workplace" within the meaning of the Income Tax Act is generally any workplace suitable for carrying out office work. Thus, a room shared with other people can also be another workplace in this sense. This also applies if the workplace in an open-plan office is not individually assigned to the taxpayer. The same applies to a shared workspace. It is not necessary to have access to the other workplace at all times. A shared workspace can therefore be available as another workplace within the meaning of § 4 (5) sentence 1 no. 6 b) sentence 2 EStG if, under the actual circumstances, a sufficient number of shared workspaces, possibly supplemented by employer-organised official usage schedules, ensure that the employee can carry out their work to the required extent there.
