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AWR, right to work and the Conduct Regulations
Charging an agency temp for accommodation: the £77.70 weekly offset, and what rent of £110, £140 or £180 does to the pay needed to stay at minimum wage
Accommodation up to £77.70 a week does not count against minimum wage pay; every pound above it does. Four rents worked for a 40-hour temp aged 21 or over.
A client with a site far from any town asks the agency to put its temps in a shared house and take the rent from their pay. The desk's first worry is whether the temp ends up under the minimum wage. GOV.UK gives a clear rule for accommodation, and this guide works it for four rents.
What GOV.UK says
From April 2026 the accommodation offset is £11.10 a day, £77.70 a week. Three points matter:
- Only accommodation provided by the employer counts. Food, a car or childcare vouchers do not.
- If the charge is at or below the offset, it does not affect the worker's pay for minimum wage purposes.
- If the charge is above the offset, the excess is deducted from the pay that counts towards the minimum wage.
- If the accommodation is free, the offset is added to the worker's pay for minimum wage purposes.
The hourly rates from the same GOV.UK page are £12.71 for 21 and over, £10.85 for 18 to 20, and £8 for under 18 and apprentices.
Four rents for one temp
Take a temp aged 21 or over, 40 hours a week at the minimum. Minimum pay is 40 x £12.71 = £508.40 a week. The weekly offset is 7 x £11.10 = £77.70.
| Weekly rent | Excess over £77.70 | Gross pay needed | Per hour | Extra over £508.40 | Extra over 12 weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £60.00 | £0.00 | £508.40 | £12.71 | £0.00 | £0.00 |
| £77.70 | £0.00 | £508.40 | £12.71 | £0.00 | £0.00 |
| £110.00 | £32.30 | £540.70 | £13.52 | £32.30 | £387.60 |
| £140.00 | £62.30 | £570.70 | £14.27 | £62.30 | £747.60 |
| £180.00 | £102.30 | £610.70 | £15.27 | £102.30 | £1,227.60 |
The sums, checked twice:
AI staff and workflows for recruitment agencies. Starting with cv screening and shortlist.See what we would set up- £110: 110.00 - 77.70 = 32.30; 508.40 + 32.30 = 540.70; 540.70 / 40 = 13.5175, shown as £13.52 (rounded up to the next penny); 32.30 x 12 = 387.60.
- £140: 140.00 - 77.70 = 62.30; 508.40 + 62.30 = 570.70; 570.70 / 40 = 14.2675, £14.27; 62.30 x 12 = 747.60.
- £180: 180.00 - 77.70 = 102.30; 508.40 + 102.30 = 610.70; 610.70 / 40 = 15.2675, £15.27; 102.30 x 12 = 1,227.60.
Two things stand out. Every pound of rent below £77.70 is free of consequence, and every pound above it costs a full pound of extra gross pay, so the cost of a £180 house is not £180 but £102.30 a week on top of the legal minimum. And the gross pay is before the rent comes off: the temp is paid £610.70 at the £180 rent, and the rent is a deduction from that.
What this means on the desk
- Set the rent at or under £77.70 a week if the aim is to leave minimum wage pay untouched, and write the weekly figure into the temp's terms.
- Price any higher rent into the charge rate. Run the extra through the temp margin calculator before agreeing a rent with the client, because the extra pay also carries employer costs.
- Check the age band. The sums above use the £12.71 rate; for an 18 to 20 temp the minimum is lower, so redo the table with £10.85. The April 2026 pay rise guide has the rates and cost per temp.
- Check whether the supply needs a licence. Accommodation for agricultural and food-chain labour often comes with a licence question; see do I need a Gangmasters licence.
What the pages do not say
I did not read the National Minimum Wage Regulations 2015, the GOV.UK page on other deductions such as uniform or tools, or the Gangmasters rules on what may be charged for housing. The table covers rent only, one age band and one hours pattern, so it is a worked example and not a pay calculation for any real person.
Overlyft 
builds AI staff who join your placements team and, when a client asks for temp housing, work out the pay needed at each rent and age band, draft the pricing note and queue it for a person to approve.
This is general information, not payroll or legal advice. Check GOV.UK and the National Minimum Wage Regulations 2015 before you set a rent.
Where this comes from: GOV.UK, "National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage: accommodation" (https://www.gov.uk/national-minimum-wage-accommodation) and "National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates" (https://www.gov.uk/national-minimum-wage-rates). From April 2026 the accommodation offset is £11.10 a day and £77.70 a week; only employer-provided accommodation counts; if the charge is at or below the offset it has no effect on pay; if it is above, the excess is deducted from the pay that counts; if accommodation is free, the offset is added to pay for minimum wage purposes. The rates page gives £12.71 for those aged 21 and over, £10.85 for 18 to 20, £8 for under 18 and apprentices. I did not read the National Minimum Wage Regulations 2015, the pages on other deductions, or the Gangmasters rules on accommodation charges, so check them before you set a rent. Read 28 October 2026.
AEO Lookup editorial team
We write practical guides for people who run small UK firms, and we check every fact against its source on the date shown. Read how we review, or tell us if something has changed.
