Per Diem

In Sweden, employers can pay their employees per diems (i.e. daily allowances) as compensation for the expenses (such as maintenance, restaurants and hotels) incurred while they are on a business trip.

Per diems are not considered part of an employee’s pay and are thus tax-free if:

  • Overnight: There must always be at least one overnight stay outside the usual place of business to be able to pay a tax-free allowance. If the business trip covered the time from 00.00 to 06.00, it is considered an overnight stay, even if the employee has worked during the night. As an additional requirement;
  • Distance from work and home: The location of the business trip should be more than 50 kilometers from the employee’s usual workplace or home;
  • Business trip: It should be a business trip, which is a trip made by employees for work to a place outside their usual workplace;
  • Up to a maximum amount: The allowance is only tax-free up to a maximum amount, which is explained below.

Reimbursements or daily allowances that do not fulfil the requirements are considered taxable income, as well as the amount that exceeds the maximum amount of daily allowances set out above.

Maximum daily allowances

These are the maximum tax-free allowances:

Domestic International
Full day SEK 290 (2024)
SEK 260 (2023)
Full allowance
Half a day SEK 145 (2024)
SEK 130 (2023)
50% of a full allowance

 

For international business trips, the Swedish Tax Agency annually determines standard amounts for most of the world’s countries. The amounts are based on what it costs to eat at a normal standard restaurant in each country. You can find the list below at the end of this article.

The day of departure is considered half a day if the trip starts at 12.00 or later. The day of return is considered half a day if the trip ends at 19.00 or earlier.

Often, overnight accommodation is provided by the employer. If it is not provided, the employer can pay a tax-free supplement of 50% of a full allowance (domestic: SEK 145 for 2024).

You can also decide to reimburse employees for their actual accommodation expenses tax-free. In this case, the employee should deliver receipts or invoices. Without proof of receipts or invoices, you can pay an employee a tax-free allowance for half a day (domestic: SEK 145 for 2024).

If the employee stays in several countries during one day, you must use the normal amount for the country where the employee spent the longest time of the day (06.00-24.00). Here, travel time by plane and boat between the countries is disregarded.

Long business trips

Maximum daily allowances

After three months 70% of a full allowance
After two years 50% of a full allowance

 

For a business trip in Sweden, this means that an employee could receive a maximum tax-free daily allowance of 70% of the full allowance after 3 months and 50% of the full allowance after 2 years.

For long business trips, an employer can only pay a tax-free allowance for the full day, not for half days.

Interruption of business trip

A business trip is considered to be continuous if it is not interrupted by a break due to the work being moved to another location for at least four weeks. Shorter breaks and breaks for vacation or illness mean that the three-month period is extended by the number of days the employee would have worked. This means extending the time that the employer can pay the full allowance.

In the event of an interruption of a business trip for a new business trip to another location, the three-month period for the original business trip may be extended by the number of days that work has been performed in another location (the new business trip). The fact that allowances are paid for the new business trip is not an obstacle to an extension.

The three-month rule does not apply when the location of the business trip is constantly on the move, such as for truck drivers and pilots.

Deductions

If the employer provides the employee’s meals during the business trip, the tax-free allowance should be reduced. Meals that are compulsorily included in the price of public transport shall not reduce the allowance.

Deductions are made according to the following table:

Domestic International
Breakfast 20% 15%
Lunch 35% 35%
Dinner 35% 35%
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You can easily download the per diem list for Sweden in Rydoo. Learn more.


International business trips: list of per diem rates (2024)

Per diem rate (in SEK)
Albanien 322
Algeriet 388
Angola 530
Antigua och Barbuda 834
Argentina 290
Armenien 557
Australien 817
Azerbajdzjan 471
Bahamas 1267
Bahrain 994
Bangladesh 499
Barbados 1125
Belarus 290
Belgien 894
Belize 681
Benin 600
Bolivia 432
Bosnien-Hercegovina 377
Botswana 407
Brasilien 505
Brunei Darussalam 551
Bulgarien 431
Burkina Faso 478
Burma See Myanmar
Centralafrikanska republiken 501
Chile 575
Colombia 343
Costa Rica 772
Cypern 682
Danmark 1274
Djibouti 697
Ecuador 703
Egypten 290
Elfenbenskusten 766
El Salvador 574
Eritrea 504
Estland 611
Eswatini 290
Etiopien 310
Filippinerna 563
Finland 948
Frankrike 935
Förenade Arabemiraten 1060
Gabon 731
Gambia 321
Georgien 381
Ghana 514
Grekland 728
Grenada 706
Greenland See Danmark
Guinea 683
Guyana 653
Haiti 789
Honduras 530
Hong Kong See Kina
Indien 377
Indonesien 488
Irak 730
Irland 1011
Island 1064
Israel 921
Italien 856
Jamaica 506
Japan 486
Jordanien 950
Kambodja 593
Kamerun 554
Kanada 1009
Kazakstan 378
Kenya 435
Kina 688
Kirgizistan 290
Kongo (Brazzaville) 680
Kongo (Demokratiska Republiken) 697
Kosovo 290
Kroatien 510
Kuba 373
Kuwait 928
Laos 290
Lettland 687
Liberia 752
Libyen 290
Liechtenstein 1147
Litauen 599
Luxemburg 977
Macao See Kina
Madagaskar 290
Malawi 403
Malaysia 319
Maldiverna 477
Mali 511
Malta 655
Marocko 470
Mauretanien 404
Mauritius 432
Mexiko 668
Mikronesien 619
Mocambique 438
Moldavien 389
Monaco 1009
Mongoliet 504
Montenegro 416
Myanmar 290
Nederländerna 792
Nederländska Antillerna 786
Nepal 312
Nicaragua 542
Niger 387
Nigeria 435
Nordmakedonien 320
Norge 1104
Nya Zeeland 656
Oman 977
Pakistan 290
Panama 779
Papua Nya Guinea 662
Paraguay 352
Peru 504
Polen 562
Portugal 613
Puerto Rico See USA
Qatar 967
Rumänien 424
Rwanda 290
Ryssland 544
Saint Lucia 789
Saint Vincent och Grenadinerna 564
Samoa, Självständiga staten 649
San Marino See Italien
Saudiarabien 1220
Schweiz 1365
Senegal 652
Serbien 453
Seychellerna 1092
Sierra Leone 290
Singapore 959
Slovakien 691
Slovenien 592
Spanien 691
Sri Lanka 471
Storbritannien och Nordirland 914
Sudan 701
Swaziland See Eswatini
Sydafrika 318
Sydkorea 681
Taiwan 615
Tanzania 413
Thailand 563
Tjeckien 735
Togo 567
Tonga 519
Trinidad och Tobago 960
Tunisien 290
Turkiet 290
Turkmenistan 1649
Tyskland 800
Uganda 422
Ukraina 393
Ungern 666
Uruguay 624
USA 1168
Uzbekistan 290
Vanuatu 743
Venezuela 420
Vietnam 433
Zambia 425
Zimbabwe 660
Austria 746
Rest of the world 493

 

Source: Skatteverket’s website

You can find the rates applicable for 2023 here.

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