Home office

Home office refers to working professionally in your own home. For tax purposes, the term is not specifically defined; what matters are the home office allowance and the rules on the home study. For many working people, the home office is normal today and also affects travel expenses and accounting.

Home office allowance (daily allowance)

For every day on which you work mainly at home and do not visit a first place of work outside your home, you can claim €6, up to €1,260 per year. If no other workplace is permanently available to you, the allowance also applies on days when you also work elsewhere. Employees claim it as income-related expenses, the self-employed as business expenses (§ 4 (5) sentence 1 no. 6c, § 9 (5) EStG). You do not need your own study for this; the dining table is enough.

Difference to the home study

A home study (häusliches Arbeitszimmer) is a separate room used almost exclusively for work. Its costs are only deductible if it is the centre of all professional activity. Instead of the actual costs, an annual allowance of €1,260 is then also possible (§ 4 (5) sentence 1 no. 6b EStG). Anyone who deducts costs for a home study cannot also claim the daily allowance.

Meals in the home office

There is no per diem for working at home. It only applies to work away from the workplace, i.e. if you are away from home and the first place of work for more than eight hours.

Travel expenses from the home office

The home office is not a first place of work. Journeys from home to a customer or another external place of work are therefore travel expenses: travel costs and, if applicable, additional meal expenses are claimed as for any work away from the workplace. Journeys to your own first place of work, for example to the office, remain commutes with the distance allowance.

Recording home office costs with Spesenfuchs

Professional expenses also arise in the home office, for example postage, printer paper, specialist literature or accessories. With Spesenfuchs, you record such single receipts digitally, assign them correctly and pass them on to accounting. This makes it easy to reimburse home office costs in the company.

Legal basis and sources: § 4 (5) sentence 1 nos. 6b and 6c EStG, § 9 (5) EStG, BMF letter of 15 August 2023 on the home study and daily allowance (LStH 2026, Annex 19 I)