Claiming Meal Allowances Correctly

Claiming meal allowances correctly

In the context of business trips, a number of costs can arise for an employee. In addition to travel or accommodation costs, the traveller must also cover the cost of their meals. Since the cost of food while travelling can be considerably more expensive, the employee can claim this additional meal expenditure.

The prerequisite for claiming meal allowances is a professional stay by employees outside their own home and outside their regular place of work.

Flat-rate amounts are stipulated for this purpose, which can vary depending on the location and duration of the stay. For this reason, one often speaks in this context of meal flat rates. The most important questions on this topic are briefly explained below.

How do the meal allowances differ?

In principle, the actual costs incurred are never billed. Instead, claiming flat rates is intended to compensate for the additional expenditure. The first distinguishing criterion is therefore the duration of the stay, which is represented by two flat rates.

• Flat rate for days of arrival and departure and for days on which you were away from home for more than 8 hours but less than 24 hours.
• Flat rate for full-day absences (24-hour flat rate)

In Germany, 12.00 EURO can be claimed for the first flat rate and 24.00 EURO for the second flat rate. Different flat-rate amounts apply to each country, which are based on the cost of living in those countries. In some cases, different flat-rate amounts also exist within a country. In France, for example, the amounts in Paris differ from those in the rest of the country.

In addition to the two flat rates mentioned, an overnight flat rate also exists. This flat rate can be used instead of the actual hotel accommodation costs. Since the flat rate in Germany is only 20.00 EURO, this is rarely worthwhile. In other countries, however, the flat rate may also be more attractive.

Every year an updated list of flat-rate amounts per country is published. A good overview of the current amounts can be found here.

What restrictions can apply to meal allowances?

Both flat rates are calculated from the additional expenditure for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Only if additional expenditure is claimed for all three meals can the flat rate be paid out in full.

If the employee does not have to pay additional expenditure for a meal, a percentage deduction is made from the total flat rate. This can happen, for example, if breakfast is taken at the hotel and is paid for by the employer.

The percentage deductions differ by meal as follows:

• Breakfast: -20%
• Lunch: -40%
• Dinner: -40%

It is important to note, however, that these deductions are always deducted from the 24-hour flat rate, even if only the first flat rate is used.

Examples for claiming meal allowances

Below are 3 examples which further illustrate the claiming of meal allowances:

Example 1: The employee travels to a customer in the morning and gives a presentation there lasting several hours. The employee then begins the journey home and arrives back home in the evening.

To claim the meal allowance, the employee must use the first flat rate. They were away for more than 8 hours but less than 24 hours. No meal was provided. For this reason they can claim the full flat-rate amount of 12.00 EURO.

Example 2: The employee sets off in the evening on a multi-day business trip and stays overnight in a hotel. The next day the employee has breakfast in the hotel and spends the entire day at the customer’s. On the following day the employee checks out and drives home. They did not book any more breakfast.

For the first day the employee must use the first flat rate, as it is the day of arrival. Here the employee can claim the full amount of 12.00 EURO, even if the journey takes less than 8 hours. For the second day the employee must use the second flat rate, as it is a full-day absence. However, the employee cannot claim the full amount of 24.00 EURO, as they have breakfast at the hotel and this is paid for by the employer. 20% is therefore deducted from the 24.00 EURO. This gives 19.20 EUR. On the third day the employee travels home but did not book any more breakfast. They can use the first flat rate in full (i.e. 12.00 EURO), even if the departure lasts less than 8 hours.

The total amount comes to 43.20 EURO

Example 3: The employee travels in the evening to an appointment and then stays overnight in a hotel. The next day the employee has breakfast in the hotel, spends the entire day at the customer’s and returns home the same day.

For the first day the employee must use the first flat rate, as it is the day of arrival. Here the employee can claim the full amount of 12.00 EURO. On the second day the employee must also use the first flat rate, as they are away for less than 24 hours. As they additionally have breakfast at the hotel and this is paid for by the employer, they cannot claim the full amount of 12.00 EURO, but only 7.20 EUR. This results from the 20% deduction from the 24-hour flat rate.

The total amount comes to 19.20 EURO.