Is travel time working time? One journey, three UK laws

Written from primary sources · Editor-reviewed · Sources last read 30 September 2026

By the tmcmatch.co.uk editorial team · Published 30 September 2026 · Last reviewed 30 September 2026 · 9 min read

6 primary sources cited on this page. How we check what is on this site

“Does travelling count?” has three different answers in UK law, because three different laws ask it. The National Minimum Wage Regulations count travel for work as working hours, but not the trip between home and a place of work. The Working Time Regulations define “working time” without mentioning travel, so the answer turns on the definition. And for tax, ordinary commuting is never a business journey. This page quotes all three and puts eight common journeys against them.

Key points

Minimum wage: travel for work, when you would otherwise be working, counts — except home to a place of work.
Between appointments: counts for the minimum wage.
Working Time Regulations: the definition of working time is the test; it does not name travel.
Tax: ordinary commuting is not deductible; other business travel can be.
Rest breaks taken during travel do not count.

Eight journeys, three laws

Common work journeys against the Working Time Regulations 1998, the National Minimum Wage Regulations 2015 and ITEPA 2003 s.338, read 2026-09-30. The working time column reports what the definition says, not case law.
Journey	Working Time Regulations	Minimum wage	Tax
Home to the normal workplace	Not stated in the definition; see below	Not counted (reg 34 exception)	Ordinary commuting: not deductible (s.338)
Office to a client site during the day	Not settled by the definition	Counted	Business travel: deductible
Between two client sites	As above	Counted (reg 34(2)(a))	Business travel
Home to a client site the employee does not normally attend	Not stated in the definition	Counted unless it falls in the home–place of work exception	Business travel if a temporary workplace
Flight to a meeting abroad, in normal working hours	Not settled by the definition	Counted where the worker would otherwise be working	Business travel
Flight on a Sunday for a Monday meeting	Not settled by the definition	Depends whether the worker would otherwise be working	Business travel
Hotel to the client site each morning	Not settled by the definition	Hotel is a place temporarily resided in for work — so not within the exception	Business travel
A rest break taken on the way	Not working time	Not counted (reg 35(3))	—

The minimum wage column is the clearest because its regulations deal with travel expressly. The working time column is the least clear because its definition does not. The tax column follows its own rule about permanent and temporary workplaces.

Minimum wage: travel for work is time work

reg 34(1), National Minimum Wage Regulations 2015

The hours when a worker is travelling for the purposes of time work, where the worker would otherwise be working, are treated as hours of time work unless the travelling is between— a the worker’s home, or a place where the worker is temporarily residing other than for the purposes of working, and b a place of work or a place where an assignment is carried out.

Read it on legislation.gov.uk

“Would otherwise be working” includes “hours when the worker is travelling for the purpose of carrying out assignments to be carried out at different places between which the worker is obliged to travel, and which are not places occupied by the employer”. The same rule applies to salaried workers through regulation 27, which counts “hours a worker spends travelling for the purposes of working, when the worker would otherwise be working, unless the travelling is between— i the worker’s home, or a place where the worker is temporarily residing other than for the purposes of working, and ii a place of work or a place where an assignment is carried out.” Breaks are out: “The hours a worker spends taking a rest break are not hours of time work.”

GOV.UK’s summary lists among the hours to include “travelling in connection with work, including travelling from one work assignment to another” and says: “Do not include time spent: travelling between home and work”. Its worked examples use care workers but the principle is general:

“The worker must be paid at least the minimum wage for the time he spends at the appointments, plus the travel time between appointments.”
“The time spent travelling from the first appointment to his home and from his home to the second appointment does not count towards the minimum wage.”

The hotel point

The exception in regulation 34 covers travel between “the worker’s home, or a place where the worker is temporarily residing other than for the purposes of working” and a place of work. A hotel booked for a business trip is a place the worker is temporarily residing for the purposes of working — so on the wording, the morning journey from that hotel to the client site is not inside the exception. That is our reading of the text; the regulations do not give a hotel example.

Working time: the definition, and why we stop there

reg 2(1), Working Time Regulations 1998

“working time", in relation to a worker, means— any period during which he is working, at his employer’s disposal and carrying out his activity or duties, any period during which he is receiving relevant training, and any additional period which is to be treated as working time for the purpose of these Regulations under a relevant agreement

Read it on legislation.gov.uk

The definition has three parts — working, at the employer’s disposal, and carrying out activity or duties — plus training and anything agreed. It does not mention travel. Whether a particular journey meets it is a question the definition alone does not answer, and we have not read case law on it at source, so we do not state an answer here. What an employer can do without them is agree the point: the definition includes “any additional period which is to be treated as working time … under a relevant agreement”.

The Regulations do have a specific category for transport staff — ““mobile worker” means any worker employed as a member of travelling or flying personnel by an undertaking which operates transport services for passengers or goods by road or air” — which is about people whose job is the travelling, not office staff on a business trip.

Tax: commuting is never business travel

Section 338 of ITEPA 2003 defines ordinary commuting: ““ordinary commuting” means travel between—(a) the employee’s home and a permanent workplace, or (b) a place that is not a workplace and a permanent workplace.”. It is not deductible and reimbursing it is taxable. Travel to a temporary workplace is business travel, with the 24-month limit set out on travel expenses and tax.

The three laws happen to draw the line in similar places — home to the normal place of work is excluded by the minimum wage rules and by tax — but they are separate tests and one does not decide the other.

Why this site has nothing to gain from your answer

We are paid a fixed fee per enquiry, agreed in advance, identical whichever supplier receives it. Travel time is here because a travel policy decides when people fly and how long they are away, and those decisions have pay and working time consequences.

Want trips scheduled inside working hours where possible?

Describe the requirement once. It goes to no more than three suppliers, once each.

For the travel policy

Say whether travel outside normal hours is treated as working time for your organisation — the Regulations allow it to be agreed.
For hourly-paid and lower-paid staff, check that travel for work is covered by at least the minimum wage.
Book morning flights on the day where it avoids weekend travel, and say who decides.
Keep commuting and business travel apart in expense claims.

Travellers working alone are covered on lone working on business trips. This page quotes UK regulations and GOV.UK guidance as read on 2026-09-30; it is not employment or tax advice.

Common questions

Is travel time working time in the UK?

It depends which law is asking. For the National Minimum Wage, travelling for work when the worker would otherwise be working counts, except travel between home and a place of work. For the Working Time Regulations, the test is the definition of ‘working time’, which does not mention travel expressly; this page quotes it and does not claim to settle it.

Do you have to be paid for travel time?

At least the minimum wage must cover travel for work when the worker would otherwise be working. Regulation 34: “The hours when a worker is travelling for the purposes of time work, where the worker would otherwise be working, are treated as hours of time work unless the travelling is between— a the worker’s home, or a place where the worker is temporarily residing other than for the purposes of working, and b a place of work or a place where an assignment is carried out.”

Is travelling between appointments paid time?

For minimum wage purposes, yes. GOV.UK’s example: “The worker must be paid at least the minimum wage for the time he spends at the appointments, plus the travel time between appointments.”

Is commuting to work paid?

Not for minimum wage purposes. GOV.UK: “Do not include time spent: travelling between home and work”. And for tax, ordinary commuting is not deductible.

Can I claim expenses for travelling to work?

Not for ordinary commuting. Section 338 ITEPA 2003 defines it: ““ordinary commuting” means travel between—(a) the employee’s home and a permanent workplace, or (b) a place that is not a workplace and a permanent workplace.”. Travel to a temporary workplace is different; see travel expenses and tax.

Does travel time count for salaried staff?

For the minimum wage calculation, yes on the same terms. Regulation 27 counts “hours a worker spends travelling for the purposes of working, when the worker would otherwise be working, unless the travelling is between— i the worker’s home, or a place where the worker is temporarily residing other than for the purposes of working, and ii a place of work or a place where an assignment is carried out.”

Sources cited on this page

Every figure above was read from the source it is attributed to on 20 September 2026. How we check this.