Now would be a good time to be working for software giant Microsoft. The company is allowing employees to work from home permanently if they want to.

Microsoft said it does not expect to reopen its offices until January, and when they do, employees who want to remain working from home can do so.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged all of us to think, live and work in new ways,” Microsoft’s Chief People Officer Kathleen Hogan said in a note to employees obtained by the tech news outlet.

“We will offer as much flexibility as possible to support individual work styles, while balancing business needs and ensuring we live our culture.”

According to The Verge, employees will need approval from their managers to work remotely on a permanent basis. But can spend less than 50 per cent of their week outside the office without approval.

Not all employees will be able to take advantage of this new work arrangement such as those who work in Microsoft’s labs or train other employees.  But this flexibility may even allow employees to relocate outside of the US.

Some major tech firms have already allowed permanent work-from-home arrangements including Facebook, whose boss Mark Zuckerberg said half of the social network’s staff could be permanently working remotely within five to 10 years.