Benefit-in-kind (BIK) changes during COVID-19 restrictions

Employer provided accommodation and equipment

Employer provided accommodation

If you provide accommodation to an employee for their private use, a Benefit-in-kind (BIK) charge generally arises. For more information, please see Free or subsidised accommodation.

You may provide an employee with temporary accommodation to mitigate against potential transmission risks of COVID-19. For example, where an employee:

  • returns from an overseas trip and requires self-isolation
    or
  • where there is a concern of transmission to other frontline workers residing in the same household. In this case, Revenue will accept that no charge to BIK will arise during the COVID-19 crisis.

This measure applied for the years of assessment 2020 and 2021, and continues to apply for 2022. For the 2022 year of assessment, 'temporary' regarding this measure means a maximum period of three consecutive weeks.

Employer provided equipment

A BIK charge will not arise where you provide equipment to your employees to set up a working space in their homes. Equipment can include laptops, printers, scanners and office furniture.