Home office expenses for employees – What you need to know for the 2022 tax-filing season

Due to ongoing challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, many Canadians are still working from home. That’s why the Government of Canada is extending the temporary flat rate method so that Canadians will continue to have a simpler way to deduct home office expenses for the 2021 tax year.

With the temporary flat rate method, eligible employees can claim a deduction of $2 for each day worked at home in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The maximum amount employees may claim using this method has been increased to $500 (it was $400 in the 2020 tax year) for the maximum of 250 working days (200 days in the 2020 tax year).

The eligibility criteria for the temporary flat rate and detailed methods remains the same for the 2021 tax year.

Employees who were not required to work from home in 2021, but who worked from home because their employer gave them the choice to do so, are still considered to have worked from home due to COVID-19.