Per Diems 2023

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 240 (2022)
SEK 260 (2023)
Full allowance
Half a day SEK 120 (2022)
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 120 for 2022, SEK 130 for 2023).

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 120 for 2022, SEK 130 for 2023).

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. 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 (2023)

Per diem rate (in SEK)
Albanien 265
Algeriet 376
Angola 956
Antigua och Barbuda 814
Argentina 305
Armenien 544
Australien 744
Azerbajdzjan 436
Bahamas 1140
Bahrain 867
Bangladesh 520
Barbados 1095
Belarus 317
Belgien 794
Belize 658
Benin 531
Bolivia 438
Bosnien-Hercegovina 345
Botswana 379
Brasilien 430
Brunei Darussalam 524
Bulgarien 389
Burkina Faso 433
Burma See Myanmar
Centralafrikanska republiken 461
Chile 487
Colombia 260
Costa Rica 610
Cypern 613
Danmark 1051
Djibouti 677
Ecuador 689
Egypten 275
Elfenbenskusten 693
El Salvador 565
Eritrea 480
Estland 526
Eswatini 260
Etiopien 269
Filippinerna 468
Finland 786
Frankrike 852
Fˆrenade Arabemiraten 1057
Gabon 680
Gambia 321
Georgien 315
Ghana 260
Grekland 639
Grenada 698
Greenland See Danmark
Guinea 694
Guyana 660
Haiti 700
Honduras 490
Hong Kong See Kina
Indien 359
Indonesien 483
Irak 659
Iran 1880
Irland 827
Island 889
Israel 1060
Italien 701
Jamaica 529
Japan 480
Jordanien 914
Kambodja 573
Kamerun 517
Kanada 844
Kazakstan 261
Kenya 502
Kina 688
Kirgizistan 260
Kongo (Brazzaville) 576
Kongo (Demokratiska Republiken) 808
Kosovo 274
Kroatien 472
Kuba 613
Kuwait 899
Laos 260
Lettland 603
Liberia 784
Libyen 260
Liechtenstein 1032
Litauen 497
Luxemburg 847
Macao See Kina
Madagaskar 260
Makedonien See Nordmakedonien
Malawi 314
Malaysia 335
Maldiverna 491
Mali 467
Malta 580
Marocko 454
Mauretanien 398
Mauritius 440
Mexiko 507
Mikronesien 560
Mocambique 415
Moldavien 337
Monaco 898
Mongoliet 395
Montenegro 392
Myanmar 260
Nederl‰nderna 721
Nederl‰ndska Antillerna 754
Nepal 287
Nicaragua 470
Niger 361
Nigeria 663
Nordmakedonien, f.d. Makedonien 305
Norge 1019
Nya Zeeland 623
Oman 915
Pakistan 260
Panama 682
Papua Nya Guinea 634
Paraguay 343
Peru 480
Polen 457
Portugal 499
Puerto Rico See USA
Qatar 897
Rum‰nien 357
Rwanda 331
Ryssland 727
Saint Lucia 681
Saint Vincent och Grenadinerna 590
Samoa, Sj‰lvst‰ndiga staten 608
San Marino See Italien
Saudiarabien 1008
Schweiz 1149
Senegal 561
Serbien 390
Seychellerna 1058
Sierra Leone 262
Singapore 862
Slovakien 548
Slovenien 539
Spanien 646
Sri Lanka 260
Storbritannien och Nordirland 779
Sudan 522
Swaziland See Eswatini
Sydafrika 289
Sydkorea 636
Taiwan 631
Tanzania 462
Thailand 546
Tjeckien 529
Togo 530
Tonga 482
Trinidad och Tobago 927
Tunisien 260
Turkiet 260
Turkmenistan 1533
Tyskland 718
Uganda 415
Ukraina 331
Ungern 385
Uruguay 547
USA 1113
Uzbekistan 260
Vanuatu 731
Venezuela 367
Vietnam 411
Vitryssland See Belarus
Zambia 630
Zimbabwe 260
Austria 669
Rest of the world 456

 

Source: Skatteverket’s website

You can find the rates applicable for 2022 here.

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