How far may the second home be from the place of work?
A second household is established if you are employed away from your main residence and maintain a second home at the place of employment. It is permissible for the second home to be located outside the immediate place of work, as long as it is still within the commuter area of the primary workplace. This means it must be possible to commute daily to work.
Distance of the second home from the workplace
The question of how far the second home may be located has been clarified in various court rulings. The decisive factor is whether daily commuting is still reasonable:
- BFH ruling (2012): A distance of 141 km to the workplace was deemed permissible because the employee could cover the distance in one hour by ICE train. According to the Federal Fiscal Court (BFH), such a time expenditure is within the usual range (BFH ruling of 19.4.2012, VI R 59/11).
- BFH ruling (2014): A distance of 83 km, which could be covered in less than an hour, was also recognised. Here, the route was considered a usual commuting route and thus reasonable (BFH ruling of 26.6.2014, VI R 59/13).
Regulation from 2014
Since 2014, the following applies: The second home is still within the commuter area of the workplace if the distance to the workplace is less than half the distance between the main residence and the workplace. This regulation was established by the Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF letter of 25.11.2020).
Example: If the distance from the main residence to the primary workplace is 100 km, the second home may be a maximum of 50 km from the workplace.
Reasonable travel time
Travel time also plays a role. A travel time of up to one hour each way is generally considered reasonable. If the second home is further away, a second household can still be recognised if the travel time is significantly reduced.
Practice and special cases
In practice, many employees seek a compromise: they want to move closer to the workplace but not so far from home that trips home would be time-consuming. A common solution is to choose a second home located between home and the workplace.
Example A: Mr Steuerle lives in B and works in C. The distance from the main residence in B to the primary workplace in C is 100 km. His second home in Z is 30 km from the primary workplace. Since the second home is less than half the distance between the main residence and the workplace (50 km), the second household is recognised.
Example B: The distance from the main residence in B to the primary workplace is 56 km. The second home in Z is 30 km away, but the travel time to work from the second home is only 25 minutes. Since the travel time is significantly reduced, a second household can be recognised despite the distance being more than half the route.
Current case law
The Finance Court Münster ruled in 2024 that a second household is not recognised if the main residence and the primary workplace are only 30 km apart and the travel time to work is less than one hour. In this case, the commuting distance is considered reasonable (FG Münster, ruling of 6.2.2024, 1 K 1448/22 E).
Conclusion: The distance of the second home from the workplace should generally be less than half the distance between the main residence and the workplace, or the travel time must be significantly reduced. A daily commuting time of up to one hour is considered reasonable. It is advisable to check the regulations carefully or seek tax advice to claim possible deductions.
