Table of contents

Domestic business trips - per diem rates 2024
Business trips abroad - per diem rates 2024
Deductions
Additional notes on the per diem allowances

Employees in Germany are entitled to per diems as compensation for the increased costs of meals and lodging when on a business trip. Per diems are not considered part of an employee’s pay and are thus tax-free up to a certain allowed amount.

Domestic business trips – per diem rates

For domestic business trips, the per diem rates are based on the duration of the business trip. The duration of the business trip is equal to the length of absence. It is irrelevant whether the employee starts the business trip from his home, the first place of work or another place of work.

One-day business trip

For business trips that last less than 8 hours, there is no daily allowance covering the expenses of meals. For business trips with a duration between 8 and 24 hours, the reduced meal allowance rate applies.

Rate category	Rate
Business trip under 8 hours	/ (no allowance)
Business trip between 8 and 24 hours	€14 per day

Multi-day business trip with overnight stay (longer than 24 hours)

For business trips that last longer than 24 hours, the standard meal allowance rate applies for a full day and a reduced meal allowance applies for the day of arrival and departure. The duration of absence of the day of arrival and departure is irrelevant. For multi-day business trip, there is an allowance for overnight stay as well, covering the accommodation expenses. However, in reality the accommodation will often be provided and full covered by the employer. In that case the lump sum for overnight stay cannot be claimed.

Duration	Rate (applicable since 2020)
Full day	€28 per day
Day of arrival/departure	€14 per day
Overnight stay	€20

Example: Rika goes to a business conference in Düsseldorf. She arrives on Monday Oct. 10th at 6 pm and departs again on Thursday Oct. 13th at 5 pm. Her accommodation and meals are not covered by her employer. Therefore she receives the following allowances (total of €144):

Monday (arrival day): €14
Tuesday (full day): €28
Wednesday (full day): €28
Thursday (departure day): €14
3 overnight stays: €60 (= €20 x 3)

⚠️ The domestic per diem rates for Germany will remain the same. Initially, the Growth Opportunities Act provided for an increase in domestic per diems from 28 to 32 EUR (24 hours) and from 14 to 16 EUR (8-24h; day of arrival or departure). However, in the amended draft law that the Bundestag and Bundesrat passed, the increase in per diems for trips within Germany was deleted. The current amounts (28 and 14 euro) will therefore continue to apply. Admins of an account with an active per diem list for a German branch will receive an e-mail with this update next week.

Business trips abroad - per diem rates

When employees embark on an international trip, different rules apply. The per diem allowance varies per destination country.

There are three different rates per destination:

The rate for 24-hour absence from home and primary workplace (“Verpflegungsmehraufwand“)
The rate for the day of arrival or departure and in case of an absence that lasts for more than 8 hours per calendar day
The rate for the cost of an overnight stay (“Übernachtungspauschale“).

The rates are defined in a regulation based on the German Income Tax Act (EStG). Find the rates below at the end of this article.

For example, this is what a German employee traveling to London can claim:

€66 per full 24 hours
€44 for the day of arrival and departure
€163 per overnight stay

Deductions

If the employee gets a meal for free (for example, if a free breakfast is supplied by the hotel), this needs to be deducted from the per diem allowance.

If breakfast is provided, 20% of the per diem needs to be deducted.
If lunch is provided, 40% of the per diem needs to be deducted.
If dinner is provided, 40% of the per diem needs to be deducted.

Additional notes on the per diem allowances

If the employee goes on multiple business trips during the same calendar day, all hours can be added together;
- Example: Mark goes on a business trip, starting at 8.30 am and ending at 2.30 pm. Later that day Mark goes on a second business trip, starting at 3.15 pm and ending at 7.15 pm. The duration of the first business trip was 6 hours and for the second business trip 4 hours. Neither of the two business trips would separately qualify for a per diem allowance, however combined (10 hours) an allowance of 14 euros applies.
If the employee has a domestic business trip and a business trip abroad on the same day, the employee should get a per diem abroad rate for the entire duration of both business trips, even if the business trip abroad does not last more than 8 hours;
When a business trip begins after 4 pm and ends before 8 am the next day (without an overnight stay), the total time can be attributed to one entire calendar day;
- Example: Erika starts her business trip at 5 pm on Oct. 1st and ends at 1.30 am on Oct. 2nd. The duration of the business trip in total is 8,5 hours, which means a daily allowance of 14 euros applies.
Employers can only offer tax-free reimbursement to employees for three months of continuous business travel. This period can be restarted after a four-week break. This is known as the three-month rule. You can find more information on the German three-month rule and how Rydoo can help you be compliant in our help center article;
Professional drivers can claim a per diem of 8 euros for every night they spend sleeping in their vehicles on a multi-day trip in Germany;
All expense invoices should be addressed to the company’s corporate address. If invoices are over 150 euros they’re required to note the employer’s name, address and VAT amount;
All original expense documents, like receipts and invoices, need to be physically or digitally backed up in the EU.

You can easily download the per diem list for Germany in Rydoo. Learn more.

Business trips abroad: list of per diem rates (2024)

	Lump sums for additional subsistence allowances for a duration of absence from at least 24 hours per calendar day (in €)	Lump sums for additional subsistence expenses for the arrival and departure day day of departure and for a duration of absence of more than 8 hours per calendar day (in €)	Lump sum for accommodation costs (in €)
Afghanistan	30	20	95
Egypt	50	33	112
Ethiopia	39	26	130
Equatorial Guinea	42	28	166
Albania	27	18	112
Algeria	47	32	120
Andorra	41	28	91
Angola	52	35	299
Argentina	35	24	113
Armenia	24	16	59
Azerbaijan	44	29	88
Australia
– Canberra	74	49	186
– Sydney	57	38	173
– Rest of Australia	57	38	173
Bahrain	48	32	153
Bangladesh	50	33	165
Barbados	52	35	165
Belgium	59	40	141
Benin	52	35	115
Bolivia	46	31	108
Bosnia and Herzegovina	23	16	74
Botswana	46	31	176
Brasil
– Brasilia	51	34	88
– Rio de Janeiro	69	46	140
– Sao Paulo	46	31	151
– Rest of Brasil	46	31	88
Brunei	52	35	106
Bulgaria	22	15	115
Burkina Faso	38	25	174
Burundi	36	24	138
Chile	44	29	154
China
– Chengdu	41	28	131
– Hong Kong	71	48	169
– Kanton	36	24	150
– Peking	30	20	185
– Shanghai	58	39	217
– Rest of China	48	32	112
Costa Rica	47	32	93
Côte d’Ivoire	59	40	166
Denmark	75	50	183
Dominican Republic	50	33	167
Djibuti	77	52	255
Ecuador	27	18	103
El Salvador	65	44	161
Eritrea	50	33	91
Estonia	29	20	85
Fiji	32	21	183
Finland	54	36	171
France
– Paris, and the departments 77, 78, 91 to 95	58	39	159
– Rest of France	53	36	105
Gabon	52	35	183
Gambia	40	27	161
Georgia	45	30	87
Ghana	46	31	148
Greece
– Athens	40	27	139
– Rest of Greece	36	24	150
Guatemala	34	23	90
Guinea	59	40	140
Guinea-Bissau	32	21	113
Haiti	58	39	130
Honduras	57	38	198
India
– Bangalore	42	28	155
– Chennai	32	21	85
– Kalkutta	35	24	145
– Mumbai	50	33	146
– New Delhi	38	25	185
– Rest of India	32	21	85
Indonesia	36	24	134
Iran	33	22	196
Ireland	58	39	129
Iceland	62	41	187
Israel	66	44	190
Italy
– Milan	42	28	191
– Rome	48	32	150
– Rest of Italy	42	28	150
Jamaica	39	26	171
Japan
– Tokyo	50	33	285
– Rest of Japan	52	35	190
Yemen	24	16	95
Jordan	57	38	134
Cambodia	38	25	94
Cameroon	56	37	275
Canada
– Ottowa	62	41	214
– Toronto	54	36	392
– Vancouver	63	42	304
– Rest of Canada	54	36	214
Cape Verde	38	25	90
Kazakhstan	45	30	111
Qatar	56	37	149
Kenya	51	34	219
Kyrgyzstan	27	18	74
Columbia	46	31	115
Congo, Republic	62	41	215
Congo, Democratic Republic	70	47	190
Korea, Democratic People’s Republic	28	19	92
Korea, Republic	48	32	108
Kosovo	24	16	71
Croatia	35	24	107
Cuba	51	34	170
Kuwait	56	37	241
Laos	35	24	71
Lesotho	28	19	104
Latvia	35	24	76
Libanon	69	46	146
Libya	63	42	135
Liechtenstein	56	37	190
Lithuania	26	17	109
Luxembourg	63	42	139
Madagaskar	33	22	116
Malawi	41	28	109
Malaysia	36	24	86
Maldives	52	35	170
Mali	38	25	120
Malta	46	31	114
Morocco	41	28	87
Marshall Islands	63	42	102
Mauritania	35	24	86
Mauritius	44	29	172
Mexico	48	32	177
Moldova, Republic	26	17	73
Monaco	52	35	187
Mongolia	23	16	92
Montenegro	32	21	85
Mozambique	51	34	208
Myanmar	35	24	155
Namibia	30	20	112
Nepal	36	24	126
New Zealand	58	39	148
Nicaragua	46	31	105
The Netherlands	47	32	122
Niger	42	28	131
Nigeria	46	31	182
North Macedonia	27	18	89
Norway	75	50	139
Austria	50	33	117
Oman	64	43	141
Pakistan
– Islamabad	23	16	238
– Rest of Pakistan	34	23	122
Palau	51	34	179
Panama	41	28	82
Papua New Guinea	59	40	159
Paraguay	39	26	124
Peru	34	23	143
Philippines	41	28	140
Poland
– Wrocław	33	22	117
– Danzig	30	20	84
– Kraków	27	18	86
– Warsaw	29	20	109
– Rest of Poland	29	20	60
Portugal	32	21	111
Rwanda	44	29	117
Romania
– Bucharest	32	21	92
– Rest of Romania	27	18	89
Russia
– Yekaterinburg	28	19	84
– Moscow	30	20	110
– St. Petersburg	26	17	114
– Rest of Russia	24	16	58
Zambia	38	25	105
Samoa	39	26	105
San Marino	34	23	79
Sao Tome – Principe	47	32	80
Saudi Arabia
– Djidda	57	38	181
– Riad	56	37	186
– Rest of South Arabia	56	37	181
Sweden	66	44	140
Switzerland
– Geneva	66	44	186
– Rest of Switzerland	64	43	180
Senegal	42	28	190
Serbia	27	18	97
Sierra Leone	57	38	145
Zimbabwe	45	30	140
Singapore	54	36	197
Slovak Republic	33	22	121
Slovenia	38	25	126
Spain
– Barcelona	34	23	144
– Canary Islands	36	24	103
– Madrid	42	28	131
– Palma de Mallorca	44	29	142
– Rest of Spain	34	23	115
Sri Lanka	36	24	112
Sudan	33	22	195
South Africa
– Cape town	33	33	130
– Johannesburg	36	36	129
– Rest of South Africa	29	29	109
South Sudan	51	34	159
Syria	38	38	140
Tajikistan	27	27	118
Taiwan	46	46	143
Tanzania	44	29	97
Thailand	38	25	110
Togo	39	26	118
Tonga	39	26	94
Trinidad and Tobago	66	44	203
Chad	42	28	155
Czech Republic	32	21	77
Turkey
– Istanbul	26	17	120
– Izmir	29	20	55
– Rest of Turkey	17	12	95
Tunisia	40	27	144
Turkmenistan	33	22	108
Uganda	41	28	143
Ukraine	26	17	98
Hungary	32	21	85
Uruguay	48	32	90
Uzbekistan	34	23	104
Vatican City	48	32	150
Venezuela	45	30	127
United Arab Emirates	65	44	156
United States of America
– Atlanta	77	52	182
– Boston	63	42	333
– Chicago	65	44	233
– Houston	62	41	204
– Los Angeles	64	43	262
– Miami	65	44	256
– New York city	66	44	308
– San Francisco	59	40	327
– Washington, D. C.	66	44	203
– Rest of USA	59	40	182
United Kingdom
– London	66	44	163
– Rest of UK	52	35	99
Vietnam	41	28	86
Belarus	20	13	98
Central African Republic	53	36	210
Cyprus	42	28	125

Source: Steuerliche Behandlung von Reisekosten und Reisekostenvergütungen bei betrieblich und beruflich veranlassten Auslandsreisen ab 1. Januar 2024

For Micronesia, the Philippines rates applies. The rate for Trinidad and Tobago also applies for Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and Grenadines and Suriname.

You can find the rates that applied for 2023 here.