Energy costs are normally part of everyday expenses and are therefore not tax deductible. However, there are a few exceptions where you can still include energy costs in your tax return.
• Electricity, internet and telephone costs can be claimed proportionately
• Costs for a second home for professional reasons can be deducted from taxes
• Craftsman services are partially deductible
Costs incurred when working from home
Anyone who works from home instead of in the office can claim the so-called home office flat rate in their tax return: Since 2023, six euros per working day in the home office, for a maximum of 210 days per year, can be taken into account as business expenses. In total, a home office flat rate of up to 1,260 euros per year can be claimed.
If you have a home office because no other workplace is available, you can instead set the electricity costs incurred in this room as business expenses, as Steuerbot reports in an article. Not only the costs of electricity can be caused by work, but also the costs of telecommunications. Anyone who works from home can claim 20 percent of the running costs for internet and telephone as business expenses – but a maximum of 20 euros per month, i.e. 240 euros per year, it goes on to say.
Getting to work and charging electric cars
According to Steuerbot, the costs of traveling to work in a vehicle are generally covered by the distance allowance. Carpool users can also declare the costs incurred as a travel allowance, the so-called commuter allowance, in their tax return. The same applies when using public transport.
This means that charging your (private) electric car at work is also tax-privileged: This employer service has been tax-free since 2017 and does not have to be taxed. However, if the electric car is provided by the employer, private charging of the vehicle is only tax-free up to a certain amount. According to Steuerbot, the tax-free flat rate for using an electric company car is 30 euros, provided the employer has charging facilities. If there is no appropriate charging option at the employer, the flat rate increases to 70 euros per month.
Second home for professional reasons
Anyone who needs a second home for professional reasons can claim up to 1,000 euros in accommodation costs each month. This also includes additional costs – such as energy costs – which can be deducted. What is important for the deduction of dual household management is that the second home is needed for professional reasons, is not the center of your life and at least ten percent of the running costs are incurred at the center of your life, explains Steuerbot.
Certain craftsman services
According to the guide to the WISO tax program, private consumption of oil and gas cannot be deducted from taxes. The situation is different with certain services provided by craftsmen. For example, if you have a heat pump installed, you can deduct 20 percent of the craftsman’s work costs from your taxes, up to a maximum of 1,200 euros. In order for the tax office to recognize the costs, an itemized invoice is required that was paid by bank transfer. The same applies to tradesmen’s services that arise from installing a photovoltaic system.
Editorial team finanzen.net
