Free Remote Work Policy Template

A remote work policy is a company-wide document setting out how remote and hybrid working operates: who is eligible, what is expected, and what the organisation provides.

It applies to everyone it covers, which is what distinguishes it from an individual remote work agreement. The policy states the rules; an agreement records one person’s specific arrangement under them.

Most organisations need both. The policy answers the questions that would otherwise be answered differently by every manager, and the agreement handles the details that vary from person to person.

Written well, it prevents a great deal of low-level friction. Most remote working disputes are not about performance; they are about expectations nobody wrote down.

A remote work policy earns its place by answering the questions managers get asked repeatedly.

• Who is eligible, and whether eligibility depends on role, tenure, or performance.
• How remote working is requested, approved, and reviewed.
• Expected working hours, and whether they are fixed or flexible.
• Availability: response times, core hours, and meeting attendance.
• Where people may work from, and whether that includes other countries.
• What equipment the organisation provides and what it does not.
• Which expenses are reimbursed, and how they are claimed.
• Security requirements for devices, networks, and documents.
• How performance is measured and how often people are expected on site.

Be specific about availability in particular. Vague expectations about responsiveness cause more remote working problems than any other single issue.

This is the area where policies most often fall short, and it needs advice rather than a template.

An employee working from another country can create obligations for the employer there. Tax, social security, payroll registration, immigration permission, and local employment protections can all be engaged, sometimes after a surprisingly short period.

It is not solved by the employee’s own permission to be in the country. Someone holidaying somewhere with a laptop and someone working there are treated differently, and the second can have consequences the employee never anticipated either.

Decide the position deliberately. Many organisations permit remote work only within named countries, require approval in advance, and cap the duration.

Take advice from an employment lawyer and an accountant before permitting work from another country. This page states no tax rule, immigration requirement, registration threshold, or time limit for anywhere.

The practical provisions do most of the day-to-day work.

Say what is provided and who owns it. Laptops, monitors, chairs, and phones should be listed, along with what happens to them when someone leaves.

Be explicit about expenses. Internet, electricity, office furniture, and travel to the office are all treated differently by different organisations, and an unstated position is read as a refusal.

Address the workspace itself. Employers often retain health and safety obligations toward homeworkers, and what those require varies by jurisdiction. A self-assessment checklist is a common approach, but confirm what applies to you.

Cover insurance and premises. Home insurance and tenancy or mortgage terms occasionally restrict business use, and employees should be told to check rather than assume.

Tip: Write the equipment return process into the policy rather than improvising at offboarding. Recovering hardware from a former employee’s home is far easier when the expectation was set on day one.

Remote working moves information out of a controlled environment, and the policy should say what follows from that.

Set device rules. Whether personal devices may be used, what must be encrypted, and what security software is required.

Cover networks and public spaces. Shared or public networks, working in cafes, and screens visible to others all deserve a plain statement.

Deal with paper. Printing, storing, and disposing of documents at home is frequently overlooked entirely.

Say who else may see the screen. Household members are not authorised recipients of confidential or personal information, and that is worth stating rather than assuming.

Where the organisation handles personal data, data protection obligations apply to remote working exactly as they do in the office, and they are the employer’s responsibility regardless of where the work happens.

A remote work policy takes an afternoon to draft and should be reviewed before publication. Document Genius walks you through each section with simple questions.

1. Decide the Model First

Fully remote, hybrid with set days, or flexible by agreement.

2. Define Eligibility and the Request Process

So managers apply it consistently.

3. Set Hours, Availability, and On-Site Expectations

Specifically enough to be enforceable.

4. Cover Equipment, Expenses, and Security

What is provided, reimbursed, and required.

5. State the Position on Other Locations

With advice taken first.

6. Have It Reviewed, Then Communicate It

By an employment lawyer or HR professional, and then to everyone it covers. Start yours now and have a draft ready for review.

A policy that is applied unevenly causes more problems than no policy at all.

Apply the eligibility criteria the same way. Approving one person and refusing another in a comparable role invites a fair question about why, and that question is harder to answer than it looks.

Consider requests properly. In some jurisdictions employees have rights to request flexible or remote working, with procedures and timescales attached, and refusing without following them creates exposure.

Handle adjustments separately. Where remote working relates to a health condition or disability, different obligations may apply, and the policy should not be used to refuse something that ought to be considered as an adjustment.

Review the policy periodically. Working patterns, technology, and legal positions all move.

Nothing on this page is legal, tax, or HR advice, and no rule on flexible working rights, health and safety duties, expense reimbursement, taxation, immigration, or data protection is stated anywhere on it. Take advice from an employment lawyer or qualified HR professional in your jurisdiction.