Remote work policy template you can edit in an afternoon

A remote work policy has one job: to answer, in advance, the questions that would otherwise be answered inconsistently by twelve different managers. Who can work remotely, during which hours, on whose equipment, at whose expense, and from which countries.

The template at the bottom of this page is written for a company of roughly 10 to 200 people that is remote-first or has a large remote group. It’s deliberately plain. Edit the bracketed parts, delete the clauses that don’t apply, and get it checked before it goes into anyone’s contract or handbook.

This is not legal advice. Employment, tax and data protection rules differ by country and by state, so check local employment law (or ask an employment lawyer) for every place your people work.

The decisions to make before you write anything

Most of the effort is in deciding, not drafting. Get these answered by whoever owns people policy, then the template mostly fills itself in.

Notes on each section of the template

Eligibility and requests. If you have UK employees, they can make a statutory flexible working request, which includes where they work, from their first day in a job. The employer has to handle it in a reasonable manner and decide within two months unless both sides agree to longer. Your policy should explain how to ask and who decides, even if remote is the default.

Working hours. Say what “available” means. A core overlap window (for example four hours that most of the team shares) plus flexibility around it is a workable default for most distributed teams. For US non-exempt employees, remember that the Department of Labor’s Field Assistance Bulletin 2023-1 treats short breaks of 20 minutes or less as hours worked wherever the employee works, and counts work the employer knows or has reason to believe is being done. A clause asking hourly staff to record all time worked, including out-of-hours messages, protects everyone.

Equipment and expenses. Spell out what you provide, what you’ll reimburse and how to claim. In the UK, employers can pay up to £6 a week (or £26 a month for monthly-paid staff) towards additional household costs for homeworkers without needing evidence of the actual costs; anything above that needs proof. Some US states have their own expense reimbursement rules, so check your states rather than assuming a single national answer.

Health and safety. In Great Britain, HSE guidance says employers have the same health and safety responsibilities for home workers as for anyone else, and that the risk assessment should cover them, usually without a home visit. A self-assessment at the start, and again if someone moves, is a proportionate approach.

Data and security. Keep this section short and point to your IT security policy for detail. The basics for remote staff are: company devices for company data, multi-factor authentication, screen locks, no shared family use of work devices, and what to do if a device is lost.

Monitoring. If you use any tool that tracks activity, say so in the policy. In the UK, the Information Commissioner’s Office has guidance on monitoring workers that expects monitoring to be necessary, proportionate and transparent. Other countries have their own rules.

Working from another country. This is the clause people skip and later regret. A few weeks working from a relative’s house abroad can create tax, social security or immigration questions for the employee and the company. Most policies require advance approval, set a maximum number of days, and route the request through whoever handles payroll and legal.

Communication norms. Link to a separate document rather than burying the detail in policy. Our guide to managing remote employees covers rhythm and response times, and async communication tools covers which tool does which job.

Onboarding and leaving. Reference your remote onboarding checklist and say how kit comes back when someone leaves (prepaid courier, deadline, who pays).

Mistakes that make remote policies useless

• Writing it once. Review it at least yearly, and whenever you hire in a new country.
• Copying a big-company policy. A 40-page policy from a multinational will have clauses about works councils and global mobility programmes that mean nothing to a 30-person company. Shorter and accurate beats long and borrowed.
• Hiding the important bits. If the core hours or the working-abroad rule matters, put it near the top, not on page six.
• Contradicting the contract. The policy and employment contracts must agree. If the contract names an office as the place of work, the policy alone doesn’t change that.

The template

Not legal advice. Check local employment law for every country and state you employ in before adopting it.

[COMPANY NAME] REMOTE WORK POLICY
Version [x.x]  |  Owner: [role]  |  Last reviewed: [date]  |  Next review: [date]

1. PURPOSE
This policy explains how remote work operates at [Company]: who it applies to,
what we expect, and what we provide.

2. SCOPE AND ELIGIBILITY
2.1 This policy applies to [all employees / employees in the roles listed in
    Appendix A].
2.2 Roles that require on-site presence are listed in Appendix B.
2.3 To request a change to your work location or pattern, write to [role]. We
    will respond within [x] weeks and in any case within the legal time limit
    where you work.

3. WORK LOCATION
3.1 Your normal work location is the address on file with [HR/People].
3.2 Tell [role] at least [x] days before changing your normal address.
3.3 Working from another country, for any length of time, requires written
    approval from [role] in advance. Maximum [x] working days per year unless
    agreed otherwise.

4. WORKING HOURS AND AVAILABILITY
4.1 Your contracted hours are set out in your employment contract.
4.2 Core overlap hours: [e.g. 14:00 to 17:00 UTC], Monday to Friday. Outside
    these, you may arrange your hours with your manager.
4.3 Set your working hours in your calendar and keep your status accurate.
4.4 Hourly (non-exempt) employees must record all time worked, including
    messages answered outside scheduled hours.
4.5 You are not expected to read or reply to messages outside your working
    hours unless you are on a published on-call rota.

5. COMMUNICATION
5.1 Follow the team communication norms at [link].
5.2 Urgent issues: [named route, e.g. phone call to on-call person].

6. EQUIPMENT
6.1 [Company] provides: [laptop, monitor, headset, chair budget of x].
6.2 Company equipment remains company property and must be returned within
    [x] days of leaving, using the prepaid return method we provide.
6.3 Report damage or loss to [IT contact] within [24 hours].

7. EXPENSES
7.1 [Company] pays [a monthly allowance of x / reimburses receipted costs for
    the items in Appendix C].
7.2 Claims go through [system] by [deadline].

8. HEALTH, SAFETY AND WELLBEING
8.1 Complete the home workstation self-assessment within [x] days of starting
    and whenever you move.
8.2 Report any work-related injury or health concern to [role].
8.3 Take your breaks and leave. Managers will not reward always-on behaviour.

9. DATA AND SECURITY
9.1 Use company devices for company data. Follow the IT security policy at
    [link].
9.2 Multi-factor authentication is required on all work accounts.
9.3 Lock your screen when away; do not let others use work devices.
9.4 Report suspected security incidents immediately to [contact].

10. MONITORING
10.1 We [do not use activity-monitoring software / use the tools listed in
     Appendix D for the purposes stated there].
10.2 Questions about personal data: [contact].

11. PERFORMANCE
11.1 Performance is assessed on agreed outcomes, the same way for remote and
     on-site employees.

12. CHANGES TO THIS POLICY
12.1 We will give [x] weeks' notice of material changes, except where the law
     requires faster change.

Appendices: A eligible roles | B on-site roles | C reimbursable costs |
D monitoring tools (if any)