Millions of people who have spent the last few months working at their kitchen table are being encouraged to apply for a tax deduction using an online form that could pay them back up to 125 125.

In early October, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) launched an online portal that provides hassle-free ways for employees to claim relief without having to pay receipts or make complicated calculations.

The government said this week that only 55,000 people have applied online so far, with millions more being asked to work from home that they can still claim.

Tax exemptions are given to workers if they ask the employer to work from home without being selected – and on the condition that they do not receive a home payment directly from their company.

Carl Khan, HMRC’s interim director general of customer service, said: “We all want the way they make money, so we’ve made the online service as easy as we can use – it takes a few minutes to make a claim.”

He said once the application is approved, the portal will adjust an individual’s tax code for the 2020-21 tax year. Employees will receive a direct tax deduction through their salary and will continue to adjust until March 2021.

Is it worth it?

If you go for an easy, non-receipt route, your claim will be based on the assumption that you spent £ 6 per week working from home and will get back the tax you paid. For – those who earn between £ 12,500 and £ 50,000 a year – 20% off the price of relief 6: 20 1.20 a week. High-rate taxpayers (those who earn more than-50,000) can claim 40% or 2. 2.40 per week.

If you finish the entire tax year sitting at home – from April 6, 2020, you get the tax bill for the next year, respectively. Be able to reduce 62.40 or 124.80. Many may want to claim points to return to work, or the worst could happen at the end of the tax year next April.

You can check if you are eligible through the Gov.uk portal.

The advantage of taking this route is that it is easy to apply and you don’t have to dig any paperwork. If you work at home four days a week and still go to the office on the fifth, you can only apply to work from home. You don’t pay cash; Your pay packet increases a bit as you pay a slightly lower fee.

What if my bills are higher?

Susan Briggs, a partner at tax accounting firm Block Rothenburg, says if the above figures don’t cost you extra, you can apply for more relief – although it’s more complicated.

“Employees who have spent significantly more have two options,” he said. “People who fill out a self-assessment form every year just add that claim. If you are lucky enough not to file an annual return, HMRC has a form – P87 that – that can cost employees a maximum of ২ 500 to, 2,500. “

You will need your own employer name and pay reference (which you can find on your paylip or P60) and your job title.

The HMRC website says the additional costs include things like “heating, meter water bills, home contents insurance, business calls or new broadband connections”. There is no such thing as a price for the home or office where you were working on mortgage interest, rent or council tax.

In reality, Briggs said, workers can demand things like extra heating for the proportion of the house and the cost of electricity or making telephone calls due to business while just sitting at home.

He said most workers will not be able to claim the price of their broadband because the HMRC assumes that the family will have it anyway, but you can register the cost of buying a laptop or office chair that you only use for work purposes.

Again, you will no longer receive the full cost of the additional costs, only the total duty discount. So if you can show অতিরিক্ত 500 in extra spending, as a basic rate taxpayer you will see that your net wage has increased by 20% or £ 100 – or 200 200 for higher rate taxpayers.

“Be careful you have to show these extra expenses and back them up with receipts. Most people will probably decide that £ 6 a week, no receipt claim is not an easy option, ”he says.