The Covid pandemic has had a huge impact on the working class. Coronavirus outbreak which began in 2020,due to which many lost their jobs and forced some employees to face pay cuts. Employees who saved their jobs had to work from home. As a result, their monthly household budget deteriorated. Internet, telephone, furniture, electricity bills started coming higher than before. Before covid, there was no tension of these expenses as these expenses used to come from the office but now it is not like that. Therefore, in the forthcoming Budget 2022, the government is planning to provide Work From Home Allowance for the employees. According to the employees, if the company is not able to avail the allowance in this way, then the government should reimburse the expenses of the employees by giving tax exemption. In the UK, the government has set some rules to give tax breaks to employees working from home. In India too, the government is expected to make a similar decision in the forthcoming budget.
According to Deloitte India's Financial Express, employees in almost all sectors are working from home during the current pandemic. As a result, the cost of work from home has increased in the monthly budget of the employees. This includes expenses on internet, rent, electricity, furniture. In view of this, it has been recommended that a discount of Rs. 50,000 be given to the employees who are doing work from home.
Some such recommendations have been made by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI). In the budget 2022, the government should give tax exemption to the employees working from home.
It has also been suggested that the Government should increase the Standard Deduction limit under Section 16 of the Income Tax Act from Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh.