People who worked from home during the pandemic can claim £125 cashback
In a spot of good news for those people who’ve had to work at home throughout the Covid-19 pandemic - you could be owed some money!
If you've been asked to work from home at any point since the pandemic began, it turns out you could be claiming up to £125 back in tax relief.
The money is offered by HMRC to help people out with the extra costs incurred by working from home - like paying higher heating/electricity bills or having to buy home working essentials.
The scheme pays out for a whole year of tax relief, which could be worth up to £125 - but even if you've only been required to work at home for just one day this tax year, you can claim the whole tax year's claim, regardless of how long you were at home for.
However, in order to claim you must have been told to work from home by your employer, as those who voluntarily chose to work from home aren't eligible.
Martin Lewis wrote: “I was sceptical, so we checked, double-checked and treble-checked. It was kosher. I even phoned HMRC.”
Speaking to Money Saving Expert, HMRC said: "We recognise that the working-from-home situation is very fluid this year, so we're accepting claims for the full year's expenses.
"That includes even if people have only worked from home for some of the year, to avoid needing to contact us if you have to work from home again."
The scheme allows people to claim a tax relief on £6 a week - according to the HMRC website: "You'll get tax relief based on the rate at which you pay tax.
"For example, if you pay the 20% basic rate of tax and claim tax relief on £6 a week you would get £1.20 per week in tax relief (20% of £6).”
And you don't need to send off any evidence or proof of the costs you've incurred to apply; you just have to have been working from home, under orders from your boss.
If all this is sounding like music to your ears, all you’ll need to apply is a Government Gateway user ID, your National Insurance number and a recent pay slip.
You can also claim back expenses you've incurred up by working from home directly from your employer in some circumstances, which could give you up to £6 a week to cover 'additional costs', amounting to £26 a month.
The HMRC website states: "From 6 April 2020 your employer can pay you up to £6 a week (£26 a month) to cover your additional costs if you have to work from home.
"For previous tax years the rate is £4 a week (£18 a month). You will not need to keep any records."
Be warned though, you can't apply for both schemes!
To find out more, or apply, you can check out the government website here.