diff --git a/env.cpp b/env.cpp
index 43a342887..c5a790eaf 100644
--- a/env.cpp
+++ b/env.cpp
@@ -484,16 +484,6 @@ void env_init(const struct config_paths_t *paths /* or NULL */)
         env_read_only.insert(ro_keys[i]);
     }
 
-    /*
-      HOME and USER should be writeable by root, since this can be a
-      convenient way to install software.
-    */
-    if (getuid() != 0)
-    {
-        env_read_only.insert(L"HOME");
-        env_read_only.insert(L"USER");
-    }
-
     /*
        Names of all dynamically calculated variables
        */