Readers’ forum: Is relief available for income from home rental?

My client and her partner both have a few months off work and are planning to go away on holiday in Europe for a few weeks and stay with family members (in the UK) for a few more.

They intend to rent out their family home on Airbnb for about a month while they are away.

They expect gross rents to be around £6 000 in this period. They believe they might be entitled to rent-a-room relief during this period and that no income tax will be due on the rents. I would be interested in readers’ thoughts on the situation.

Query 20 200 – Coffee Mate.

There will be no relief if your home is let while you live abroad.

Coffee Mate’s clients are thought to be incorrect: the rental profits are thought to be taxable. While not entirely free from doubt it is HMRC’s...