Tax

Home office: which expenses can a self-employed person deduct?

By the Finances Indépendants editorial teamUpdated on 4 min read

Contents
  1. Can you deduct a home office as a self-employed person?
  2. Flat-rate or actual expenses: the choice that decides everything
  3. Which housing costs go into the business share?
  4. Tenants: the annex 270 MLH trap
  5. SRL director: renting your office to your company
  6. Further reading
  7. Frequently asked questions
Home office: which expenses can a self-employed person deduct?
Actual expenses
The only regime that lets you deduct the share of your homeFPS Finance2026
270 MLH
Annex to attach to deduct rent without a VAT-compliant invoiceFPS Finance2026
5/3
Of the revalued cadastral income: above this, rent paid by the company to its director becomes remunerationFPS Finance2026

Can you deduct a home office as a self-employed person?

Yes. A self-employed person who works in part of their home can deduct the business share of that home's costs. The general rule applies: any expense incurred to acquire or retain taxable professional income, that you have actually paid yourself and can prove, is deductible.

The deduction never covers the whole home. It concerns the part used for the business: a room fitted out as an office, a consulting room, a workshop. A room that doubles as a guest room or playroom in the evening is hard to defend, because it is not used exclusively for work.

This mechanism concerns the self-employed person operating as an individual, who declares their profits or earnings for personal income tax (IPP/PB). The director of an SRL/BV (private limited company) has another route, explained below: renting the room to their company.

Flat-rate or actual expenses: the choice that decides everything

A home office can only be deducted under actual expenses. FPS Finance states that the statutory flat-rate allowance already takes into account the cost of fitting out, in your home, a room you use for your profession. A self-employed person who stays on the flat rate therefore cannot add anything for their office.

Switching to actual expenses has a consequence: this regime replaces the flat rate for all your business expenses, not just the office. You then have to justify every item, from equipment to travel. The choice is made again every year, when you file your return.

The calculation is simple to set out: add up your justifiable actual expenses, including the share of your home, and compare the total with the flat-rate allowance you would have been entitled to. Our page on deductible expenses details both regimes and their ceilings, and the business expenses glossary entry gives the definitions.

Home office

Evidence required

Self-employed on the statutory flat rate

Already covered by the flat rate

None

Self-employed on actual expenses

Business share deductible

Invoices, receipts, allocation key

Director renting a room to their SRL

Rent charged to the company

Lease; above 5/3 of the revalued CI, remuneration

Summary of the rules published by FPS Finance. For guidance only.

Which housing costs go into the business share?

The business share covers the housing costs you bear yourself: rent if you are a tenant, energy, water, home insurance, maintenance and repairs. Each is deducted for its business portion, calculated with an objective allocation key that you must be able to explain to the tax authorities.

The easiest key to defend is often floor area: the area of the office as a proportion of the living area. Another key is possible if it better reflects actual use. What matters is consistency: the same key from one year to the next, and a room genuinely reserved for the business.

  • A plan or sketch of the home, with the area of each room.
  • The year's invoices and receipts, in the name of the self-employed person deducting them.
  • A few photos of the fitted-out office, useful in the event of an audit.
  • Costs specific to the office (furniture, lighting, painting the room) are deducted separately, without a key.

Tenants: the annex 270 MLH trap

A tenant who deducts part of their rent must, in the absence of an invoice compliant with VAT rules, attach an annex 270 MLH to their return for each property concerned. Without this annex, FPS Finance considers the rent not deductible, even if it has actually been paid.

Most private landlords do not issue invoices: the annex is then the rule, not the exception. It sets out additional information about the rental. Remember it before the deadline, whether you file yourself or through your accountant: our article on the self-employed tax return sets out the timetable.

SRL director: renting your office to your company

The director of an SRL can rent the work room in their home to their company, which pays the rent and books it as an expense. However, rent and rental benefits for a built property let to one's own company are taxed as remuneration to the extent that they exceed 5/3 of the revalued cadastral income.

Generous rent is therefore not a back-door way of taking money out cheaply: the excess follows the remuneration regime of a company director. To weigh up rent, remuneration and dividends, see our article on the order for taking money out of an SRL.

Further reading

The pages on this site that explore each of the points covered here in more depth.

Frequently asked questions

  • Yes, for the part of the home actually used for their business, provided they opt for actual expenses and can prove payment. Without an invoice compliant with VAT rules, they must attach annex 270 MLH to their return; otherwise the rent is not deductible.

  • Yes. According to FPS Finance, the statutory flat-rate allowance already takes into account the cost of fitting out a work room in the home. A self-employed person on the flat rate deducts nothing extra for their office. To deduct it separately, they must switch to actual expenses for all their business expenses.

  • With an objective allocation key, most often floor area: the office area divided by the living area. The key applies to rent, energy, insurance and maintenance. Keep a plan showing the areas and use the same key every year to stay consistent in the event of an audit.

  • It is strongly recommended. A mixed-use room, an office by day and a guest room at night, makes the business share hard to justify. The more exclusive and visible the business use (fittings, equipment, possibly receiving clients), the easier the deduction is to defend to the tax authorities.

  • Yes, the company then pays rent that it books as an expense. But rent and rental benefits for a built property let to one's own company are taxed as remuneration for the part exceeding 5/3 of the revalued cadastral income. A written lease and a reasonable rent avoid unpleasant surprises.

  • Yes, under actual expenses, costs specific to the office are deducted without an allocation key, since they serve only the business: furniture, computer, lighting. Durable assets are depreciated over several years rather than deducted in one go. Your accountant sets the depreciation schedule.

Topics covered

Topics covered: home office deductible expenses self-employed Belgium · deducting part of your rent self-employed · business share of your home · actual expenses or flat-rate home office · annex 270 MLH rent · SRL director renting office to own company · rent requalified as remuneration five-thirds cadastral income.

Official sources

  1. FPS Finance, Flat-rate and actual expenses. View (new tab)(Official source, accessed on 2026-10-04)
  2. FPS Finance, Explanations for part 2 of the preparatory document for the personal income tax return. View (new tab)(Official source, accessed on 2026-10-04)
  3. FPS Finance, Other benefits (company directors' remuneration). View (new tab)(Official source, accessed on 2026-10-04)

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