Working from home determination

Inland Revenue has issued a new determination which means employers can pay employees, who are working from home, up to $20 a week tax-free for expenses such as additional heating costs, without having to estimate or show what the employee's actual expenses were.

Employers can also now make a tax-free payment of up to $400 per employee for furniture costs, without having to work out actual expenses.

The determination is a temporary response to the Covid-19 pandemic and only applies to payments for expenses incurred between March 17 and September 17 2020.

This determination is not intended to suggest that employers must make such payments to staff who were working from home.

Source: https://www.classic.ird.govt.nz/