HOME OFFICE EXPENSE CLAIMS FOR 2020 TAX YEAR - COVID-19
/February 23, 2021
With regards to the Home Office Expenses claim, the CRA has come up with a couple of options
concerning the deduction of home office expenses due to COVID. The first option is the
Simplified Method and involves a "Temporary Flat Rate", and this is what I am generally
recommending for individuals who do not normally work from home but who worked from
home in 2020 due to the pandemic. Under this option, you do not need a form T2200 nor the
T2200S, and you can claim $2 per day that you worked from home, up to a maximum of $400
(which covers 200 days or approximately 40 full weeks of working from home). Under this
method, essentially all you need to do is figure out the number of days you actually worked
from home. This method keeps things simple and avoids a lot of the "hassles" that come with
claiming under the detailed method, and in most cases, the $400 amount is reasonable even if
doing the detailed method. To be eligible, you must have worked from home due to COVID
and must have worked from home for at least 50% of the time for a period of at LEAST 4
CONSECUTIVE WEEKS during 2020. (Note: If your employer covered your expenses for working
from home, you don't qualify in any circumstances).
Under the Detailed Method, you need either the T2200S or the T2200 from your employer, and
in order to claim the expenses, you will need to take all your hydro bills, your heating, and water
and add them up for the period(s) that you worked from home, and you can claim a portion
of your internet bills so would need to add all of those up as well. To be eligible to claim under
the detailed method, you must have worked from home for at least 50% of the time for a
period of at LEAST 4 CONSECUTIVE WEEKS (as is the case to qualify for the simplified method)
or the office space you worked from must be used solely for employment purposes, and you
must have regularly met with customers, clients, etc. in this office space. The detailed method
obviously requires a bit more time and effort, and for the most part, I don't believe it will give a
far different results (although it depends on the circumstances).
So again, the choice is really yours but you should consider the Simplified Method if you do not
normally work from home but did so in 2020 due to the pandemic.