Expenses claimable, but home office does not rule tax-wise

Many South Africans are still working from home following the outbreak of a second wave of Covid-19 and the extended lockdown regulations.

This means a lot of household expenses have now become work-related expenses. The ability to claim these expenses remains problematic because of the rules, aimed mainly at curbing abuse.

One of these rules stipulates that the person needs a dedicated area in their house used exclusively for work.

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“This seems unfair to the many people who work in their lounge or bedroom because they are not privileged enough to live on a big property,” says Yolandi Esterhuizen, registered tax practitioner and director at Sage Africa and Middle East.

“I would welcome the relaxation of these rules, even if only as a temporary measure.”

There are instances where people will be able to claim some of the expenses, but the burden of proof remains tough.

Burden of proof

Esterhuizen says if someone is employed and earns a salary, they will be able to claim if they earn commission (or variable payments) and do not perform their duties mainly in an office provided by the employer.

They will also be able to claim deductions if work mainly from home more than 50% of the time.

Esterhuizen says the claimable deductions include interest on a bond, rent of the premises, other expenses such as cleaning, and wear and tear on assets used for purposes of the home office if they are owned by the employee.

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The size of the study in comparison to the house determines the amount that may be claimed.

If the study is 20m2 and the house is 200m2, the study represents 10% of the house area and 10% of the running costs relating to the house may be claimed.

Charles de Wet, executive consultant at ENSafrica, says from a policy point of view the rules need urgent attention.

“The current rules are outdated and no longer relevant in a changed workplace.”

Employees who were forced to set up an office at their home and run it (water, electricity, cleaning) have a massive burden of proof.

“Surely they must be able to claim some of their expenses to be in the same position as when they were working from the office,” says De Wet.

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If they had to make structural changes to have an area that is exclusively used for work, will they be able to claim?

Esterhuizen hopes Finance Minister Tito Mboweni will announce reforms in his 2021 budget today.

Relief

Although some commentators believe the better-than-expected tax collections could mean taxpayers may receive fiscal drag relief, De Wet is not optimistic.

Fiscal drag occurs when inflation rather than an increase in income moves a taxpayer into a higher tax bracket.

To this end, National Treasury will likely attempt to generate revenue by “intentionally overlooking” the effects of fiscal drag.

This is sustainable because of the current low inflation rate of around 3%.

This article first appeared on Moneyweb and was republished with permission.

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