Per Diems

Per diem for 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 base amount for a domestic per diem is €10,00/day, and starting from 1 February 2022 the maximum (indexed) amount is €18,11/day.

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 (€18,11) 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 base amount for a domestic overnight allowance is €75,00 per night and the maximum amount (since 2 February 2021) is €135,85/night.

Per diem for 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. 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
• 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 (or all) of the meal (and other small) expenses on the business trip are paid by the employer or any third party, these deductions need to be applied:

• 15% of the daily allowance amount for breakfast
• 35% of the daily allowance amount for lunch
• 45% of the daily allowance amount for dinner
• 5% of the daily allowance amount for 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 maximum amount (as determined by the Belgian government) for the daily allowance is different for each country. Please find the list with the official maximum amounts (last updated on 6 July 2018) here.

Per Diem for long international business trips

For daily allowances for international business trips longer than 30 consecutive calendar days, other maximum rates apply (60% of the maximum rate of short business trips?). Please find the list with the official maximum amounts (last updated on 6 July 2018) here.

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.

Belgium per diems for home working

A Belgian employer can grant its employees working in Belgium an allowance for home working. The allowance can only be granted to employees who work from home regularly and at least eight hours per week.

There are different allowances for home working:

• Allowance for general office expenses (stationary) like printing paper, drinks, insurance, utilities (electricity, water), maintenance, and rent (if applicable). The maximum amount is €129,48 per month (with an exception for the months of April, May, and June 2021 for which the maximum is € 144,31).
• Allowance of € 20 per month if the employee uses his/her own pc and other IT equipment (monitor, printer, scanner).
•  Allowance of € 5 per month if the employee uses a pc from the employer, but his/her own 2nd screen.
• Allowance of € 5 per month if the employee used a pc from the employer, but his/her own printer/scanner.
• Allowance of € 20 per month if the employee uses his own internet connection (and does not receive a separate allowance for this from the employer)

Briefly:

The allowance for general office expenses can be combined with the other allowances, but the allowance for using a personal computer can not be combined with the allowances for a second screen or printer/scanner.

The employer can also decide to reimburse home office expenses based on the actual costs to the employee.

There is also the possibility for the employer to reimburse the cost of office furniture for the employee’s home office. There is no allowance (lump sum) foreseen, so these expenses should be reimbursed based on the actual costs.

Car related allowances

Target rates for the following allowances are based on the decisions of DVB (Dienst Voorafgaande Beslissingen):

– Garage allowance (max. €50/month): can be granted if the employer demands that the vehicle (or its contents) be safely parked and only if the employee is not the owner of the garage.

– Parking allowance (max. €15/month): to cover the parking expenses an employee makes during business trips, so employees do not need to expense each individual parking ticket.

– Car wash allowance (max. €15/month): based on 2 car wash visits per month (costing €10 each).

Internet access and telephone expenses

For employees (who can claim a daily allowance for business trips) and have their home address as their primary work location, an additional allowance for internet access and use of their personal phone for business purposes of €60/month can be granted.

Representation allowance

If an employee regularly has costs related to building and maintaining professional relationships (gifts, reception costs, small treats,…), the employer can grant the employee a representation allowance. This allowance can only be granted in combination with a daily allowance (per diem) and the maximum allowance is €50/month based on a decision of the DVB (Dienst Voorafgaande Beslissingen).

For this allowance, proof has to be made available whenever requested by the fiscal authorities (proof that the costs that were made to justify the allowance are actual business-related and proof that the allowance was actually spent to pay for those costs).

Usage of private mobile phone subscription

If an employee regularly has costs related to building and maintaining professional relationships (gifts, reception costs, small treats,…), the employer can grant the employee a representation allowance. This allowance can only be granted in combination with a daily allowance (per diem) and the maximum allowance is €50/month based on a decision of the DVB (Dienst Voorafgaande Beslissingen).

For this allowance, proof has to be made available whenever requested by the fiscal authorities (proof that the costs that were made to justify the allowance are actual business-related and proof that the allowance was actually spent to pay for those costs).

Allowance for business literature

There is no maximum or target amount set for this type of allowance.

For this allowance, proof has to be made available whenever requested by the fiscal authorities (proof that the costs that were made to justify the allowance are actual business-related and proof that the allowance was actually spent to pay for those costs).

Use of personal tools or appliances

This allowance can be granted if an employee has to use personal tools or appliances for business reasons.

The target amount for this type of allowance is between €25 to €50/month.

For this allowance, proof has to be made available whenever requested by the fiscal authorities (proof that the costs that were made to justify the allowance are actual business-related and proof that the allowance was actually spent to pay for those costs).