Germany's home-office allowance (Home-Office-Pauschale) became permanent in 2023 — and it is still one of the most commonly missed work-expense items on a German tax return. Anyone working from home regularly leaves up to €1,260 per year on the table without it. Run your own number through the home-office allowance calculator to see the result in two clicks.
Legal basis
The deduction sits in § 4 Abs. 5 Satz 1 Nr. 6c EStG. It was introduced in 2020 as a Covid-era special measure, made permanent in 2023 and lifted to today's cap. Unlike the classic home-office room (§ 4 Abs. 5 Nr. 6b EStG), it does not require a separate, exclusively professional room.
It complements but does not replace other work-related expenses: work tools, training, business-share of internet or phone bills. If you also commute, you combine the allowance day-by-day with the distance allowance — but only one of the two per day.
The formula: €6 × days, capped at 210 days
The math is intentionally simple:
Allowance = min(home-office days, 210) × €6
That yields the €1,260 annual maximum. Days beyond 210 do not count — not even partially. Working from home 250 days yields exactly the same deduction as 210 days.
Three examples
- 50 days: 50 × €6 = €300
- 120 days: 120 × €6 = €720
- 250 days: capped at €1,260 (equivalent to 210 days)
Which days count?
A day counts when professional activity was carried out predominantly in the home. "Predominantly" means more than half of that day's working time:
- Pure home-office day: counts
- Half day at home, half day at the office: does not count — neither side predominates
- Morning home-office, afternoon site visit: only counts if home work clearly predominates
- Holidays, sick days, public holidays: do not count
Practical tip: keep a simple log — date, start/end, activity. The tax office rarely asks for it, but if they do you have proof on hand.
No workroom required
The decisive difference from a "home study" deduction (§ 4 Abs. 5 Nr. 6b EStG): the home-office allowance does not need a closed-off room. Kitchen table, living-room corner, desk in the bedroom — all qualify. As long as you predominantly work there, the allowance applies.
If you actually run a fully fledged study — a separate, exclusively professional room that constitutes the centre of your entire professional activity — you can choose between the allowance and the actual costs (rent share, utilities, cleaning). For a typical 9-to-5 job with office commuting the allowance is almost always simpler and often the better choice.
Combining with the commuter allowance
The home-office allowance and the distance allowance are mutually exclusive per calendar day, not per year. That's good — almost no one works fully from home all year. Example profile:
- 3 days/week in the office (≈ 138 commute days)
- 2 days/week home-office (≈ 92 home-office days)
At a 30 km commute that yields: distance allowance ≈ (20 × €0.30 + 10 × €0.38) × 138 = €1,352.40 plus home-office allowance 92 × €6 = €552. Total: roughly €1,904 in Werbungskosten just for travel and home work — comfortably above the €1,230 lump sum, so the tax benefit is real.
Comparison with the standard work-expense lump sum
The German tax office automatically deducts a €1,230 work-expense lump sum (§ 9a Nr. 1a EStG) from every employee's gross income. The home-office allowance only creates real savings once your total Werbungskosten — allowance + work tools + training + commuting — exceed that amount.
Rule of thumb: at the maximum 210 home-office days and zero other expenses, the allowance just barely beats the lump sum (€1,260 vs. €1,230). The leap from €1,260 to €1,260 plus work tools is what really moves the needle. Use the income-related expenses calculator to check the full picture.
Making the savings tangible
What does it mean in cash? Three profiles:
- Full-time, 100 home-office days, 35 % marginal rate: €600 × 35 % = €210 saved
- Full-time, 210 home-office days, 35 % marginal rate: €1,260 × 35 % = €441 saved
- Full-time, 210 home-office days, 42 % marginal rate: €1,260 × 42 % = €529 saved
Estimate your marginal rate using the income tax calculator or the gross-net calculator.
Filing on the tax return
The allowance goes in Anlage N (employee income) under Werbungskosten. ELSTER prompts directly for "Tagespauschale für Tätigkeit in der häuslichen Wohnung" together with the number of home-office days. The system automatically multiplies by €6 and caps at €1,260. Nothing else needed — no receipts, no square-meter math, no usage shares.
Three common mistakes
- Double-counting days: per day either home-office or distance allowance — not both. The tax office checks this automatically.
- Skipping the workroom comparison: if your home is the centre of your entire professional activity, deducting actual workroom costs may exceed €1,260 — the allowance is then often the worse choice.
- Counting more than 210 days: extra days are ignored. The €1,260 cap is hard.
Special cases
Self-employed and freelancers
Self-employed taxpayers also use the allowance — as a business expense rather than work-related expense. The mechanics are identical: €6 × days, max. €1,260. Enter under "Sonstige Betriebsausgaben" in Anlage EÜR or Anlage S.
Multiple jobs in parallel
Anyone with several jobs (main + side activity) may claim the allowance only once in total — not per job. The €1,260 cap applies per person per year.
Students and trainees
Study time also counts when you claim Werbungskosten or anticipated Werbungskosten. For first-degree studies the rules are case-specific; for a second degree or dual study the allowance is usually relevant.
Bottom line
The German home-office allowance is one of the simplest dials on a tax return: no workroom, no receipts, no square-meter calculations. €6 per day, 210 days maximum, €1,260 per year. Anyone working from home regularly and counting their days cleanly recovers €200–€500 per year depending on marginal rate — for almost no effort. The home-office allowance calculator shows your number in seconds.