Belgium Per diem

Domestic Business Trips

A Belgian employer can give an employee the possibility to claim a daily allowance for domestic business trips. This allowance is tax-free, both for the employer and the employee receiving it, on the condition that the amount of the allowance is not higher than the maximum amount determined by the Belgian government (this is the amount that the Belgian government allows its own employees to claim).

The basic rate for a domestic daily allowance is €10,00 per day, but this amount is indexed:

The domestic daily allowance is granted to compensate for the cost of meals during the business trip. In this way, the employee who receives the daily allowance should not claim the actual individual meal expenses for reimbursement.

There are some conditions that need to be fulfilled in order to be entitled to claim for a domestic per diem:

• the trip should be business-related (away from the home and/or office)
• the trip duration is at least six hours
• the distance of the trip is more than 25 kilometres outside of the primary work location (could be the home address or a company’s office address)

The amount of the daily allowance should be reduced in certain cases:

•  when the employee is receiving a meal voucher for that day, the daily allowance should be reduced with the amount the employer pays for the meal voucher (max. €6,91 per meal voucher). If the employee is deducting the lunch from the per diem because he/she is expensing the lunch separately, the meal voucher needs to be deducted from the actual lunch expense. Ideally, the employer would not give the employee a meal voucher on the days he/she receives a per diem, gets a free lunch, or needs a lunch (with colleagues, customers,…) reimbursed.
• when one or more of the meals on that day are paid for by the employer or a third party (such as breakfast when it’s included in the cost of the hotel accommodation).
•  when the employee is attending an event or seminar where the cost of one or more meals is included in the participation fee.

For employees who are constantly travelling for work (inside Belgium), the employer can give the employee the allowance on a monthly base. This means 16 times (for a full-time worker) the base amount (€10,00) or maximum amount (€21,22) is paid out on a monthly basis.

An overnight allowance can be added to the daily allowance (per diem) when an employee needs to spend the night out of his house during a domestic business trip and when:

• the cost for the overnight stay is not paid by the employer
• there are no costs related to the overnight stay (for example: staying with a friend or family member, or staying in a company apartment)

The basic rate for a domestic overnight allowance is €75,00 per night and the amount is also indexed:

RSZ

The National Social Security Office (RSZ) does not follow the tax authority’s flat rates but uses a lower flat rate for the reimbursement of domestic business trips, called ‘allowance for travel expenses’. It is important to check the RSZ amounts that apply to your case.

International Business Trips

Short international business trips

A Belgian employer can give an employee the possibility to claim a daily allowance for short (<30 consecutive calendar days) international business trips (category 1). This allowance is tax-free, both for the employer and the employee receiving it, on the condition that the amount of the allowance is not higher than the maximum amount determined by the Belgian government.

The daily allowance for short international trips is granted to compensate for the cost of meals and other small expenses (local transportation costs, drinks, snacks, tips, costs for telecommunication) during the business trip. In this way, the employee who receives the daily allowance should not claim the actual individual meal (and other small) expenses for reimbursement.

The daily allowance can only be claimed by employees who normally work in the company (non-field based) and do not travel abroad on a daily basis (like for example truck drivers).

A full daily allowance can be claimed for each full day (= a day between two overnight stays) abroad. Half a daily allowance can be claimed for the day of departure and return. If the departure and return date are on the same day and the trip is at least 10 hours, a full daily allowance can be claimed.

If the business trip consists of visits to multiple countries, the daily allowance will be determined by the location of the last overnight stay.

An overnight allowance can be added to the daily allowance (per diem) when the cost for the overnight stay is not paid by the employer. An overnight allowance cannot be claimed when there are no costs related to the overnight stay (for example: staying with a friend or family member, or staying in a company apartment).

If some of the meals on the business trip are paid by the employer or any third party, these deductions need to be applied:

• 35% of the daily allowance amount for lunch
• 45% of the daily allowance amount for dinner
• 20% of the daily allowance amount for other small expenses

Also, the same goes for short international business trips, if the employee receives meal vouchers for the days he/she is on the business trip, the amount of the meal voucher needs to be deducted from the daily allowance. Furthermore, it is obviously not allowed for an employee to claim expenses made during the business trip based on the receipt in combination with the daily allowance.

The employer can choose to either grant a lump-sum of maximum €37,18 (not dependent on the country of the business trip) or to follow the maximum amount determined by the Belgian government that are different per country. Please find the list with the official maximum amounts below at the end of this article.

Long international business trips

For daily allowances for international business trips longer than 30 consecutive calendar days, other maximum rates apply (category 2). Please find the list with the official maximum amounts below at the end of this article.

Furthermore, the daily allowances for long international trips are limited to 24 months and should stop when the employee decides to permanently reside in the location abroad.

Accommodation allowance

The employer can reimburse the employee accommodation costs if this was not provided by the employer. The actual accommodation costs will be reimbursed, the accommodation fees only serve as a maximum (see second column below).

International business trips: per diem rate tables (applicable since 14 July 2025)

Source: Ministerieel besluit (published in BS 14.07.2025)

Before 14 July 2025, the rates defined in Ministerieel besluit 15 February 2023 applied.