The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) will reimburse staff for the extra cost of commuting to its new headquarters in Canary Wharf for three years, with no cap on how much employees can claim, according to documents released under a freedom of information request submitted by Bloomberg.
The government department is moving its 680 employees from Westminster to Canary Wharf, less than 15 minutes away on the Jubilee line, by early 2027. It has told staff it will pay the difference between the cost of their current commute and their new journey to east London.
All employees who have worked for the SFO since at least 1 April are eligible for the reimbursement, except for a handful of senior directors, the documents showed.
Full-time SFO employees are asked to go into the office twice a week. Most of the UK civil service must work from the office at least three days a week.
A peak-time single fare between Westminster Underground station and Paddington or Euston costs £3.10, according to Transport for London, while the fare to Canary Wharf is £3.60. On those fares, the additional cost of travelling to Canary Wharf instead of Westminster is 50p a journey.
An SFO spokesman said: “We are looking forward to moving to Canary Wharf into accommodation that supports our operational needs as we continue our important work tackling serious fraud, bribery and corruption. The excess fares allowance supports eligible staff during this transition.”
The SFO announced in November 2025 that it would relocate to Cabot Square in Canary Wharf. The move is due before the end of this financial year, which runs until March 2027.
The department has been based at the Canadian High Commission in Cockspur Street, around the corner from Trafalgar Square, since 2012, according to that announcement. Leasing agents expect the new office to be much cheaper than the current headquarters.
Graham McNulty, the SFO’s chief operating officer, said at the time of the announcement: “This move will be an investment in our future, providing accommodation that supports our unique operational needs as we continue our important work tackling serious fraud, bribery and corruption.”
The SFO said funding for the move was agreed in the Spending Review in 2025. The Cabot Square building is already a base for the Competition and Markets Authority, which has been in Canary Wharf since 2019, and the Office of Rail and Road.
Canary Wharf is about five miles from central London and is home to large banks and other financial services companies.
The SFO’s allowance comes as other employers face objections from staff over office attendance. Thousands of employees at Barclays sent an open letter to the bank’s management last month demanding a one-off “time-in-office payment” or exemptions for staff living more than 40 minutes away. The bank had told them they needed to be in the office three days a week, up from two.
Several leaders of white-collar businesses have set out publicly why they favour in-office working, including Jamie Dimon, the chief executive of JP Morgan, and Satya Nadella, the chief executive of Microsoft.
Over the summer EY, the Big Four accounting firm, reminded its junior workers about “the importance of meaningful time spent together” for their development, particularly of softer skills such as presenting to and interacting with clients.
Revolut said in June that it would require graduates and interns to spend three days a week in the office from 2027, while leaving its remote-first policy unchanged for other staff. Citigroup took a different position in February 2025, when its chief executive, Jane Fraser, told managing directors that staff could continue working remotely up to two days a week.
