SteuerGo FAQs

(2023) When is no other workplace available?

If you do not have access to another permanent office for your professional activities, you can claim tax relief for your home office costs. This applies to both employees and self-employed individuals. You can deduct a daily allowance of 6 euros per day, up to a maximum of 1,260 euros per year. An example of this is teachers who work at school but do not have their own workspace for lesson preparation. In addition to this allowance, you can also claim travel expenses to the school. It is no longer necessary to have a separate office; a work corner or the kitchen table is sufficient.

In certain cases, another workplace is not permanently available, and the daily allowance can be deducted in principle, even if travel expenses to the company or office are also claimed. For example:

• Teachers do not have their own desk at school for lesson preparation.
• Orchestra musicians have no opportunity to practise in the concert hall. They use their home for this purpose.
• The provided workplace is unusable for health reasons (BFH ruling of 26.2.2014, VI R 11/12, BStBl 2014 II p. 674).

In other cases where another workplace is available but does not meet the requirements of the specific professional activity, the daily allowance can also be deducted. For example, if an IT consultant is on call from home and cannot use the employer's workplace (BFH ruling of 7.8.2003, VI R 41/98, BStBl II 2004 p. 80).

The decision on whether another workplace is available depends on objective criteria. Subjective opinions do not play a role. The workplace must be usable in the required manner. Another workplace is not available if you regularly cannot use another workplace for only a few days or weeks. In such cases, you can only deduct the daily allowance on days when you actually work from home and do not visit another workplace.

If you have multiple professional activities, the conditions for deducting the daily allowance must be checked separately for each activity. The daily allowance can only be deducted once per day, regardless of how many activities you perform.

It is important to prove that no other workplace is available for the respective activity. A corresponding certificate from the employer can be helpful here.

The daily allowance cannot be deducted if costs for a home office or the annual allowance for an office have already been deducted. The record-keeping requirements for a home office do not apply to the deduction of the daily allowance.