A payroll administrator in Cork wants to work from home on Wednesdays. She spends the morning reconciling records and the afternoon answering queries. Most of that work already arrives electronically. But a courier brings paper forms, and someone occasionally comes to the desk with a correction before payroll closes. A convincing request explains what would happen to both people if she were working from home.
Choose a start date you can actually request
In the Republic of Ireland, an employee can request a remote working arrangement from the start of employment. An approved arrangement can begin once you have completed six months of continuous employment with that employer. Section 20 of the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023 sets out what your request must contain. The employer considers it and decides whether to approve it.
Submit your request as soon as reasonably practicable and at least eight weeks before the proposed start. Suppose the Cork employee started on 1 September 2026 and wants her first remote Wednesday to be 3 March 2027. By 3 March she will have completed six months. Eight weeks before that Wednesday is 6 January. Submitting on 4 January would meet the notice period in this illustration.
Check your employer’s procedure for the correct recipient and any application form already in use. The request must be written and signed. The Workplace Relations Commission code also recognises an online application. Include the working pattern you want, when it would begin, any proposed end date, your reasons, the location and why it suits the work. Keep a dated copy and a record of when the employer received it.
Walk through an ordinary Wednesday
Before writing, check how the last few Wednesdays actually went. Which tasks required the original paper? Which interruptions were questions that a colleague could just as easily send to the payroll queue? Note when the courier arrived, who accepted the envelope and how long the team had before the batch needed processing. One day close to the monthly cut-off may tell you more than three quiet Wednesdays.
For the Cork administrator, a useful distinction is between accepting an envelope and processing its contents. Reception may already accept deliveries each day. If the batch can wait until Thursday morning, the only change may be where reception stores it overnight under the existing procedure. If it must be processed that afternoon, a colleague would need authority and time. Discuss that with the manager before promising somebody else’s help.
Test the suggested day against work that happens less often. A Wednesday every four weeks might include a payroll sign-off that requires attendance. You could propose attending on those dates and agreeing another remote day in advance. If paper deadlines make most Wednesdays difficult and the reason for your request allows it, Tuesday may offer the same benefit with fewer changes for colleagues.
Explain why the location works
Give your actual proposed work location through the employer’s application process. Describe the space, the connection and the equipment you would use there. For payroll, mention how you can take a call without others overhearing it and keep the screen out of view. Explain how you would use the company’s approved systems for electronic records. The code discusses suitable workspace, equipment, connectivity and cooperation with workplace safety requirements.
Be explicit about anything that still needs checking. If your laptop has never connected to the payroll application from home, ask IT to test access before the first Wednesday. If the room is private only until mid-afternoon, consider where you would handle confidential calls after that point. Do not offer to forward documents to personal email or take original payroll paperwork home to solve a timing problem.
Put the request in your own words
The Commission’s application template provides space for the formal details. The following wording illustrates the fictional employee’s proposal. Replace the bracketed details before sending and use the employer’s form where applicable. “I’d like to work remotely each Wednesday from 3 March 2027, with my usual working hours and duties. I am requesting an ongoing arrangement. Removing the Wednesday commute would give me more time at home that evening, and the reconciliation work is well suited to a quiet morning.”
“I would work in my home office at [location]. I have a private room, a desk and a reliable connection. I would use the company laptop and approved connection, join the 10 am call and cover the payroll queue during my usual hours. I can complete the workspace assessment and check access with IT before starting. Where a paper batch can wait, I propose processing it first thing on Thursday.”
“Could we check the cut-off for Wednesday deliveries and agree cover for urgent originals before the first remote day? I’d welcome a review after six Wednesdays to see whether queries are answered on time and the paper batches reach payroll by their deadlines. I am available to discuss dates that coincide with a payroll sign-off.” Add your name, signature and submission date.
Know when to expect a response
Under section 21, the employer must consider its own needs, yours and the code. The employer must respond as soon as reasonably practicable, normally within four weeks of receiving the request. Approval involves an agreement signed by both parties. A refusal must give the reasons in writing. If the employer has difficulty assessing whether the proposal is workable, it may give written notice extending its consideration by up to eight further weeks.
If the employer asks for more details, provide the further information it reasonably requires. A question about processing urgent forms could be answered with the cut-off time, the number arriving on a recent Wednesday and the options the team has confirmed. Use an example with identifying details removed. Keep the employer’s response alongside the request, including any revised dates. Begin the arrangement on the agreed date once approved.
For a request received on 4 January, four weeks falls on 1 February. If you have heard nothing by then, a short follow-up can establish where things stand. “I submitted my Wednesday working request on 4 January. Could you confirm it reached the right person and let me know the outcome or the period of any extension? I can provide the payroll cut-off calendar if that would help.”
Make the review answer a real question
The Cork employee and her manager could look at Wednesday queries that carried into Thursday beyond the team’s normal response window. They could also check whether anyone missed a paper deadline or spent extra time covering the desk. Compare these observations with recent office Wednesdays, taking account of busy payroll weeks. A single complex case requiring external confirmation deserves a different explanation from a delay caused by an unattended envelope.
At the review, discuss what to keep and what needs adjusting. If reception had to chase the batch twice, agree who acknowledges receipt on Thursday. If the day itself needs changing, record the agreed change and update the rota. Both parties should retain their signed agreement. A review date gives you a chance to discuss experience. If you intend the arrangement to end after six Wednesdays, specify an end date in the request and agreement.