It depends. Unfortunately, for most remote workers, the shift to work from home–whether forced or optional–doesn't qualify for a tax write-off of their workspace as a home office. But for self-employed individuals, the home office deduction could be a great opportunity to take advantage of. Self-employed individuals may qualify for a deduction on Schedule C for home office expenses. See this TurboTax tips article for more information.
The home office tax deduction allows qualified taxpayers to write off certain home expenses related to their business use of their home when they file their taxes. To claim the home office deduction on your tax return, taxpayers must exclusively and regularly use part of their homes or a separate structure on their property as their main and primary place of business.
Prior to the Tax Cuts and Job Act (TCJA) passed in 2017, employees could deduct unreimbursed employee business expenses, including deductions for the home office. However, for the tax years 2018 to 2025, these deductions for employee business expenses have been suspended.
There are some exceptions. If your employer requires you to work at home, and you live in one of the states, such as California, that still allows miscellaneous itemized deductions, you can enter home office expenses on your Federal return (where you won't receive a deduction) and they will flow through to the state return if you qualify and if your miscellaneous itemized deductions exceed 2% of your adjusted gross income and your total itemized deductions exceed your standard deduction for your state.
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