The impact of working from home on travel and subsistence claim

The shift towards hybrid and remote working has fundamentally changed how we think about business travel and subsistence claims. With more people splitting their time between home and the office, HMRC guidance on what you can and cannot claim has become increasingly important. If you’re a business owner or self-employed in the Worcester area, understanding these rules could save you money — or prevent costly mistakes come tax return season.

What counts as a business journey?

The good news is that HMRC hasn’t fundamentally changed its position on travel expenses. The bad news? The rules are stricter than many people think, particularly in a flexible working environment.

For a journey to be claimable, it must be a business journey rather than ordinary commuting. HMRC distinguishes between the two quite carefully. Travelling from your home to your usual place of work — even if it’s a hybrid arrangement — is generally considered ordinary commuting and isn’t allowable. This applies whether you go in once a week or four times a week.

However, if you’re travelling to a temporary workplace, or from one workplace to another (perhaps visiting a client or project site), that journey can be claimed. The key word is “temporary.” HMRC guidance suggests that if you’re visiting the same location for more than 40 days consecutively, it’s no longer classed as temporary, and the usual commuting rules apply.

Home-to-office travel: the challenging area

This is where hybrid working gets tricky. Many employees working from home ask whether they can claim travel costs on the days they come into the office. Unfortunately, the answer is typically “no” — even if they’ve been working from home for months.

HMRC’s position is that your home is your base, and travelling from your base to your usual place of work is ordinary commuting. This applies regardless of how infrequently you travel in. The fact that you also work from home doesn’t create a special exemption.

There’s one exception: if you have two or more workplaces and you’re travelling between them (not including your home), costs may be claimable. This might apply if you have a satellite office and you’re travelling between it and your main office, for example.

Subsistence: meals and refreshments

Here’s where things become slightly more manageable. Subsistence allowances — covering meals and refreshments — can be claimed when you’re travelling on business, but not for everyday meals at or near your workplace.

However, if you’re away overnight on business, overnight meal costs are allowable. From the 2024/25 tax year, HMRC allows £5 for breakfast, £10 for lunch, and £15 for dinner when travelling in the UK (the rates increased from £5, £10, and £15). If you’ve had to spend more because of circumstances beyond your control, you can claim the actual cost with evidence.

Where working from home affects subsistence, it’s usually because people mistakenly claim regular coffee or lunch at the office. These aren’t allowable — HMRC considers these personal expenses.

Record-keeping and working from home relief

If you’re self-employed and work from home, you might be better served claiming the simplified home working allowance. From April 2023, this is £12 per week (or roughly £624 per year). You can claim this if you use your home as an office, without needing to evidence every utility bill or expense. However, you can’t claim home working allowance and detailed home office expenses — you must choose one method.

This allowance covers utilities, internet, and wear and tear, but doesn’t include travel costs to an office.

Getting it right

The most common mistake we see at Severn Accounting is people claiming travel that falls into the ordinary commuting category. Keeping a simple log of journeys — noting whether it’s commuting or a genuine business trip — helps clarify what’s claimable. For hybrid workers, it’s worth reviewing your working pattern at year-end and checking your claims align with HMRC guidance.

If you’ve been claiming travel to your office on hybrid working days, it’s worth getting this sorted sooner rather than later. The best approach is to be conservative: only claim where you’re genuinely confident HMRC would allow it.

For tailored advice, contact Severn Accounting — we’re here to help.