How do I ask my employer to work from home?

First decide which route you are taking

You have two options, and the difference matters more than it first appears. You can simply ask your manager, or you can make a formal statutory request. Acas says both are open to you, and that informal agreement is the route if you have no statutory right or if your workplace has its own process.

The catch is protection. Acas notes that arrangements agreed outside the statutory procedure do not carry statutory protection from unfair dismissal and detriment. An informal chat is often the sensible opening, but if the answer matters to you, the written request is what gives you standing.

The statutory right belongs to employees. Acas says agency workers, casual workers and people on zero-hours contracts are not likely to count. If you are not sure of your status, its helpline can talk it through.

What the request has to say

Check your staff handbook first, because your employer may have a form or name a person to send it to. Otherwise, a letter or email to your manager will do. The request must include:

• the date of the request
• the change you want, such as a change to your place of work
• when you would like it to start
• whether you have made a previous statutory request to this employer, and the date of each one
• a statement that this is a statutory request for flexible working

8 January 2027. This is a statutory request for flexible working. I would like to work from home on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, attending the office on Wednesdays and Fridays, starting on 1 March 2027. I have not made a previous statutory request to this employer.

That wording is our own illustration, with made-up dates. Acas publishes a template letter if you would rather start there. You can make two applications in any 12 months, and only one can be live at a time, so it pays to get this one right. Allow plenty of notice as well, since the decision can take two months.

Answer the objections before they come up

The list above does not ask for your reason. It still helps to write a short paragraph on how the work would carry on, because the employer's decision turns on the business reasons below. Say how you would be reached, which meetings you would come in for, and what a quiet week in the office tends to involve anyway. Offering a trial period can make a yes easier to give, though nothing obliges either side to agree to one.

Your employer may also carry out a risk assessment to check that home working is suitable and safe, so it is worth having the answer ready. Our desk set-up guide covers what a workable space looks like, and our guide to employers' duties at home covers the rest.

If you are asking because of a disability, you have another route. Employers have a legal duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled employees, and Acas says you can use either that or a flexible working request.

What your employer has to do next

GOV.UK says the employer must consider the request in a reasonable manner and decide within 2 months, unless you agree to longer. That period includes any appeal. If they are inclined to refuse, they must discuss it with you first. If they agree, they should write to you confirming the changes and start date, and update your contract no later than 28 days after approval.

Read that last part slowly. Acas says an agreed change usually alters the terms of your contract, so it may be permanent unless you agree otherwise. If you only want it for a year, or you may want to come back, raise that before you sign.

The eight reasons for refusal

1. Extra costs that would seriously harm the business
2. Work that cannot be redistributed among other staff
3. Being unable to recruit someone to do the work
4. Harm to quality
5. Harm to performance
6. Harm to the ability to meet customer demand
7. Not enough work during the proposed hours
8. Planned workforce changes

If the answer is no

There is no statutory right of appeal, though Acas says employers should give you the option as part of a reasonable procedure. If yours has one, use it. Otherwise, write setting out why the decision or the process was wrong and what outcome you want.

You cannot go to a tribunal just because the answer was no. GOV.UK lists narrower grounds: the request was not handled in a reasonable manner, it was wrongly treated as withdrawn, you were treated poorly for asking, or the refusal rested on incorrect facts. A complaint must usually be made within 6 months, and for problems before 1 October 2026 the limit may be 3 months. Acas says you must notify it before making a claim.

This is general information and your position will depend on your contract and the facts. For anything heading towards a dispute, speak to the Acas helpline, a union representative or an employment solicitor. Do not wait on it, as the time limits are short.

What is due to change

The Employment Rights Act 2025 tightens this. In its consultation response, updated on 15 September 2026, the government says employers will be able to reject a request only where it is reasonable to do so, and will have to hold a meeting first and give the outcome in writing. Its stated intention is for both changes to take effect in autumn 2027. That is an intention and could move, so check the current position before relying on it.

While you are thinking about costs, note that the old tax claim for home working has gone. See our note on tax relief for working from home before you budget around it.