Denis Yurin

When sending an employee on a business trip, the organization must not only pay for travel and accommodation, but also issue the so-called daily allowance. And in addition, the Labor Code of the Russian Federation obliges him to maintain his average earnings for those days when he was on this work trip.

In practice, many questions arise about what the amount of daily allowance should be, how the average earnings for business trips are calculated, and vice versa, whether travel allowances are included in the calculation of average earnings. And if a professional accountant solves such problems like nuts, then it is often incomprehensible to an ordinary employee. But we all have the right to know how much money we should receive for certain work tasks.

Our calculator for calculating average earnings for a business trip will help with this.

Calculator for calculating travel allowances and daily allowances

Total earnings for the billing period

Number of days worked during the billing period

Number of days on a business trip

The amount of daily allowance established in the organization

Help: how to use the travel allowance calculator

Step 1. Indicate your total labor earnings for the pay period. The billing period is the 12 months actually preceding the business trip. That is, roughly speaking, you need to multiply your salary by 12. This is not a completely accurate method, because there are always months where the salary is lower (for example, due to sick leave), and vice versa, there are months where it is higher (for example, due to the bonus). It is ideal, of course, to accurately calculate the payment amounts for all 12 months. If you know them (remember them or have printouts), then we recommend doing so for a more correct calculation.

Step 2. Indicate how many days you worked during this pay period (remember, this is 12 months before the month of the business trip).

Please note that only working days are counted here, excluding vacation days, sick leave and previous business trips.

The numbers you entered at stages 1 and 2 will already tell the attentive reader how to calculate the average earnings for a business trip. We will see the result of the calculation a little lower, but for now we will say that to obtain this indicator you just need to divide the first by the second. Pure mathematics. 🙂

Step 3. Write how many days your business trip lasted (or will last). Count all calendar days, including weekends and holidays (if they are included).

Step 4. The last stage is the amount of daily allowance that is accepted in your organization. You can check this amount in your accounting department. The peculiarity is that each company or institution has the right to set a daily allowance that is convenient for it, taking into account the minimum established by law. So only your accountant knows this figure.

Result: the calculator will instantly make the necessary calculations, and you will get the following results (in our example):

• amount of daily allowance to be issued- this is the amount that must be paid to you for all days of the business trip. Let's remember;
• average daily earnings- this is the main indicator that is used for calculations in our case. This is the same main average salary for a business trip in 2019, on which the final amount of payments to the posted worker depends;
• travel allowance amount- your final payment for a business trip based on average earnings in 2019. It includes both daily allowance and payment based on average earnings. The business trip is thus fully paid for.

Help: how are daily allowances calculated for business trips in 2019?

Almost every employee can be sent by management to carry out an official assignment outside the place of permanent work, i.e. on a business trip. Some are pleased with such orders, others are upset, but everyone, without exception, is concerned with the question of how much money they should pay him and how to calculate travel expenses.

What can a seconded employee expect?

In accordance with current legislation, the employer is obliged to pay the posted worker:

• expenses for travel and rental accommodation (tickets, gasoline, hotel or apartment rental, etc.);
• daily allowance;
• other possible expenses, if they are given the go-ahead by management.

The procedure and related to business trips of employees of state or municipal institutions is determined by the relevant federal or municipal regulatory legal act (usually government regulations). For all other employees, the question of how to calculate travel expenses is determined by a collective agreement or other local regulatory act of the enterprise.

When sent on a business trip, an employee is usually given a certain amount of money in advance - to pay for travel and accommodation, as well as in the form of daily allowances. Depending on the rules and regulations adopted in a particular organization, a person may be given already purchased travel documents and paid for a hotel room, but the daily allowance must be issued in cash or transferred to a card before departure on a business trip.

How much will they pay for one day?

Neither the minimum nor the maximum amount of daily allowance is determined by law for 2019, so each organization sets its amount independently, usually this is stipulated in the collective agreement. Therefore, the amount paid for additional expenses to seconded employees of different enterprises varies and can range from 100 rubles to several thousand.

How are daily allowances calculated for a business trip?

If an employee is sent abroad, then during his stay in another country he will receive payment in the appropriate currency and in the amounts established for business trips abroad.

If an employee travels abroad from Russia on a business trip, then the date of crossing the Russian border is included in the days for which money must be paid in foreign currency. Accordingly, when returning to Russia, the date of border crossing is included in the days for which additional travel expenses are paid in rubles.

What to pay special attention to

Situation 1. Income tax

Vasily Pugovkin works as an engineer at one of the Siberian factories. And so they decided to send him to Moscow for a conference for ten whole days. According to the collective agreement, the daily allowance at his enterprise is 1,200 rubles per day, accordingly, Vasily estimated that he should be given twelve thousand for ten days. However, the accounting department gave him a smaller amount. Vasily is perplexed: what did he do wrong, there is so little honor and how to calculate the daily allowance on a business trip?

And the whole point is that the articles of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation establish the maximum amount of daily allowance that is not subject to personal income tax - 700 rubles for business trips in Russia and 2,500 rubles. per day - for foreign trips. Therefore, from an amount exceeding 700 rubles per day, the accounting department withheld 13% of personal income tax, as a result, the payment was not 12,000, but 11,350 rubles.

Situation 2. Money was not paid before the business trip

They urgently decided to send Semyon Petrovich on a business trip. We paid by bank transfer, bought plane tickets, but promised to transfer money for expenses later. Semyon Petrovich is wondering what to do. You don’t want to end up in a foreign city without money, but you’re also scared not to go in case you get fired.

What to do in such a situation depends only on the employee himself, in particular, on the availability of his own funds and on the degree of his trust in the promises of management. But an employee’s refusal to travel due to failure to receive the required advance payment for expenses cannot entail disciplinary liability. The fault in this case lies not with the employee, but with the employer, who has not fulfilled his obligation to timely calculate and pay daily allowances.

There was a strong opinion that daily allowances are paid to an employee primarily for food on a business trip. However, it is wrong. Daily allowances are issued to compensate for those expenses that cannot be taken into account in advance and which cannot be documented. Let's look at the complex and controversial issues that accountants most often face when calculating and paying daily allowances.

What are daily allowances for?

An employee of an organization who leaves to carry out an official assignment outside the place of permanent work (on a business trip) is compensated for the additional expenses incurred by him related to living outside his place of permanent residence, called daily allowances (Article 168 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, clause 11 of the Regulations on the specifics of sending employees to work business trip approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated October 13, 2008 No. 749, hereinafter referred to as the Regulations).

Many believe that daily allowances are paid to an employee primarily for food on a business trip, so to speak, as compensation for the lack of homemade borscht and cutlets. But it is not so. The costs of food, clothing and other employee needs are his personal problems. He receives a salary and decides where and how to spend it. The fact that he is on a business trip does not mean that his home office is obliged to feed him at this time. He is obliged to pay for travel to and from the place of business trip, accommodation and other documented expenses that he is forced to bear only because he performs work outside his place of residence, but he is not obliged to provide food.

Daily allowances are issued to compensate for those expenses that cannot be taken into account in advance or that cannot be documented.

Example 1

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Costs for travel to the place of business trip, chocolate (according to the good old tradition) for the boss’s secretary with whom you will need to communicate, telephone conversations on work issues on a personal mobile phone, etc. All these expenses cannot be documented. They would not arise in a permanent place of work, but the employee must be compensated for them. After all, they are clearly aimed at solving those tasks for which the employee was sent on a business trip.

Payment rates

Many probably saw a time when daily allowances were strictly regulated. Currently, for profit tax purposes, the amount of daily allowance is determined only by the will of the organization (subclause 12, clause 1, article 264 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). There is no upper or lower limit.

It should be taken into account that if, when traveling within the country, the daily allowance in an organization exceeds 700 rubles, and when traveling abroad - 2,500 rubles, then the excess amount increases the employee’s income, subject to personal income tax.

Daily allowances are paid for each day of a business trip, including weekends and non-working holidays, as well as for days en route, including during a forced stopover (clause 11 of the Regulations).

If, under the terms of a business trip, an employee has the opportunity to return to his place of permanent residence every day, daily allowances are not paid (clause 11 of the Regulations).

The question of the advisability of the daily return of an employee from the place of business trip to the place of permanent residence in each specific case is decided by the management of the organization, taking into account the distance, transport conditions, the nature of the task being performed, the need to create conditions for the employee to rest and other objective conditions.

We determine the days of departure and arrival

The day of departure on a business trip is the date of departure of the vehicle - train, plane, bus, ship, etc. - from the place (settlement) of permanent work , and not the employee’s place of residence (clause 4 of the Regulations).

At departure of the vehicle up to 24 hours inclusive, the current day is considered the day of departure, and from 00 hours and later - the next day.

Example 2

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If the train leaves on October 5 at 23:59, then the employee left on a business trip on October 5. If the train departs, for example, 4 minutes later, that is, at 00:03, then this is already October 6 - the next day.

When a station, pier or airport is located outside a populated area, you should take into account the time required to travel to the station, pier or airport.

At the same time, let us once again draw attention to the fact that a locality is the location of the organization, and not the place of residence of the employee.

That is, according to clause 4 of the Regulations, an employee (even at three o’clock in the morning) on ​​a business trip formally leaves his place of permanent work, and not from home. And the time required to get to the airport is calculated based on the route: “Work - Airport”, and not “Home - Airport”.

Before boarding the plane At the airport you must go through registration and personal search. Check-in, as a rule, begins 2 hours before the departure time indicated on the ticket (the departure time, like the arrival time, is always local), and ends 40 minutes before the departure of the plane.

Passengers who are late for check-in or boarding the plane will not be allowed to board the flight. Consequently, to the time required to get to the airport (on average, it’s about an hour), you need to add another hour to go through check-in, security, and wait for the announcement to board the plane.

You can board the train three minutes before departure (train tickets indicate Moscow departure and arrival times), as well as board the bus.

If an employee goes on a business trip on company transport, in your own car(or to someone else, managing it by proxy), then the period of departure on a business trip is determined by supporting documents. They can serve, in particular, as a car waybill, invoices, receipts, gas station receipts, or other documents confirming the route (clause 7 of the Regulations).

If travel documents are not available, then the period of stay on a business trip can be confirmed by documents for renting residential premises at the place of business trip (clause 7 of the Regulations).

But if an employee cannot present documents of residence, then he must confirm the length of stay on a business trip with an official (report) note or a document from the receiving party about his actual presence there (clause 7 of the Regulations). Such a document can be drawn up in any form. But in essence, it is a duplicate of a travel certificate, the mandatory presence of which was abolished on January 8, 2015 by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated December 29, 2014 No. 1595.

Therefore, in our opinion, when sending an employee on a business trip, it is optimal to still issue him a travel certificate. An example, as before, can be form No. T-10, approved by Decree of the State Statistics Committee of Russia dated 01/05/2004 No. 1 “On approval of unified forms of primary accounting documentation for the accounting of labor and its payment,” which since 2013, we recall, is not mandatory for use.

The day of arrival from a business trip is calculated in a similar manner, that is, according to a travel document, which also indicates the time of stay. However, there is no time given to get from the airport to the place of permanent work.

Example 3

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If the plane lands at 23:59 (according to the ticket), then this day should already be considered the last for business travel purposes. Although getting there at night will probably be a little more difficult than in broad daylight. True, if necessary, theoretically you can get a certificate from the airport stating that the actual landing was at 00.07.

Daily allowance amount

For all days between two dates (departure and arrival), the employee must receive a daily allowance calculated based on the amount established by the organization’s local regulations. Here everything has already been left to the management of the organization.

The amount of daily allowance can be either equal for all employees, regardless of position, length of service, etc., or it can differ, say, depending on the region of assignment. For example, for business trips to Vologda, the daily allowance will be higher than for those who went to Kerch (or vice versa). The organization is not obliged to prove to the tax authorities the correctness of such actions.

In addition, no one forbids setting the amount of daily allowance depending on the position. That is, the daily allowance of the director or his deputies may exceed the daily allowance of department heads. And those, in turn, will have more than ordinary employees. Or, again, vice versa. The highest daily allowances may go to the workhorses who bring profit to the enterprise, and not to those whose task is to guide and inspire.

But here, in our opinion, as when establishing the official salary (tariff rate), the amount of daily allowance should be specified in the employment contract. In this case, only three people will know about it: the manager, the employee and the accountant.

For your information

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The conclusion that the amount of daily allowance can be differentiated, including depending on the position or other factors, was formed back in 2008, when Federal Law No. 158-FZ dated July 22, 2008 and Government Decree No. 1043 c dated December 29, 2008 On 01/01/2009, the daily allowance standards established by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated 02/08/2002 No. 93 were abolished. Many felt that this violated the principle of social justice. But what kind of discrimination are we talking about? No one is indignant (at least out loud) when two employees in the same positions and performing the same work with the same (in the opinion of one of them) result are given different salaries. And perhaps this difference can be quite significant. The same goes for daily allowances. The management knows better who bears what expenses on a business trip and to whom and how to reimburse them.

At one-day business trips within the Russian Federation, as mentioned above, daily allowances are not paid (clause 11 of the Regulations). In this regard, I recall an incident from the author’s personal practice (during his service as a senior inspector-auditor of one of the construction departments of the USSR Ministry of Defense). It is still relevant today.

Example 4

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When conducting an audit of the financial and economic activities of one of the subordinate departments located in Leningrad (as St. Petersburg was then called), the advance report of an employee sent on a business trip to a higher department in Moscow was checked.

According to the travel certificate, the date of departure from the business trip is September 06, the date of arrival is September 08. The employee was compensated for the cost of tickets and paid daily allowance for three days. When checking the report, it was established that the departure time of the Leningrad - Moscow train was on September 7 at 00.07. Departure time from Moscow is September 7 at 16.40, and arrival time in Leningrad is September 7 at 23.40. Thus, the period of stay on a business trip was one day (September 07), and daily allowances were not subject to accrual and payment.

This violation was noted in the audit report, and the management of the department was ordered to recover from this employee the amount overpaid to him.

A similar situation is quite possible in modern conditions.

At the same time, it makes sense to pay attention to the opinion of the Russian Ministry of Finance, expressed in letter dated July 16, 2015 No. 03-03-07/40892. In particular, it notes that for one-day business trips, reimbursement of other expenses in cases, procedures and amounts determined by a collective agreement or local regulations is carried out upon presentation of documents confirming these expenses (clause 24 of the Regulations).

However, when foreign one-day business trips daily allowances (according to the norm established for a business trip to this state) are paid in half (clause 20 of the Regulations). In our opinion, this is relevant when traveling to neighboring countries (Kazakhstan, Belarus, Ukraine).

For example, in one day you can go from the Smolensk region to the Vitebsk region and back, or from the Orenburg region to the Aktobe region, etc. But it is very difficult to fly to Paris or London on business and return on the same day.

When traveling abroad, the date of crossing the state border is determined by the marks in the foreign passport (clause 18 of the Regulations). In the case of a business trip to the CIS countries (when a mark is not placed in the international passport when crossing the border), the date of crossing the border is determined by travel documents.

Daily allowances for the day of crossing the border are paid according to foreign standards (in foreign currency), and when returning home (that is, to the place of permanent work) - in rubles (according to Russian standards).

Thus, if an employee flies on a business trip abroad by plane, then on the day of departure he will receive the daily allowance in foreign currency. And for the day of departure, say, from Paris home - in rubles.

All expenses incurred by the posted employee after approval of the advance report are written off as expenses by posting:

Debit account 26 (44) Credit account 71.

If expenses were incurred in any foreign currency, they are subject to conversion into rubles at the rate valid on the date of approval of the advance report by the head of the organization (subclause 5, clause 7, article 272 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

Despite the fact that labor legislation provides for several reasons for paying daily allowances, most often the employer encounters their payment when sending employees on business trips. Moreover, the daily allowance paid in this case has always been the subject of increased attention from the tax authorities. Since not only does their size significantly affect income tax, they, like other payments to employees, are closely related to the calculation of personal income tax and insurance contributions for compulsory types of social insurance.

This article discusses the payment procedure and the amount of daily allowance reimbursed for business trips, as well as issues of their taxation (as of February 10, 2010).

Types of daily allowances

The provisions of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation oblige the employer to pay daily allowances in three cases:

1) when sending employees on a business trip (Article 168 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);

2) business trips of employees whose permanent work is carried out on the road, in the field, or has a traveling or expeditionary nature (Article 168.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);

Note that, regardless of the basis for the payment, per diem, the Labor Code of the Russian Federation understands nothing more than additional expenses of the employee associated with living outside his place of permanent residence. At the same time, these types of daily allowances still differ.

Thus, daily allowances paid for business trips and trips to improve the skills of employees are determined by the employer independently and are enshrined either in a collective agreement or in another local regulatory act, for example, in regulations on business trips.

Daily allowances paid to employees for the traveling nature of work, working in the field or participating in work of an expeditionary nature (hereinafter referred to as “traveling” daily allowances) may also be established by an employment contract.

Let us note that the presence of “travelling” daily allowances is typical only for specialized organizations, but daily allowances paid when an employee is sent on a business trip take place in the activities of almost any company, since business trips of employees are a common occurrence for the vast majority of organizations.

Extraction

from the Labor Code of the Russian Federation

Article 166. The concept of a business trip

A business trip is a trip by an employee by order of the employer for a certain period of time to carry out an official assignment outside the place of permanent work. Business trips of employees whose permanent work is carried out on the road or has a traveling nature are not recognized as business trips.

The specifics of sending employees on business trips are established in the manner determined by the Government of the Russian Federation.

Article 167. Guarantees when sending employees on business trips

When an employee is sent on a business trip, he is guaranteed to retain his place of work (position) and average earnings, as well as reimbursement of expenses associated with the business trip.

Based on Article 168 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, reimbursable travel expenses of an employee include daily allowances. Moreover, obliging the employer to pay daily allowances when sending an employee on a business trip, as noted above, the Labor Code of the Russian Federation allows the employer to independently decide the issue of the procedure and amount of their payment.

Using this right, the organization independently determines its “internal” daily allowance standards and enshrines them either in the collective agreement or in the regulations on business trips. At the same time, the organization has the right to take a differentiated approach to establishing its “internal” daily allowance standards. Thus, nothing prohibits an employer from providing one daily allowance rate for the company’s management, and another for ordinary employees of the company. In addition, the organization can set the amount of daily allowance depending on the location of the employee’s business trip, since it is clear that the employee’s additional expenses associated with a business trip to Moscow will be higher than when traveling to the Russian outback. If an organization operates not only in the Russian Federation, but also in the foreign market, then the organization should determine the amount of daily allowance paid for business trips abroad.

Rules for payment of daily allowances

Today, as is known, when sending employees on business trips, employers are guided by the Regulations on the specifics of sending employees on business trips (approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of October 13, 2008 No. 749; hereinafter referred to as the Regulations).

Clause 11 of the Regulations states that daily allowances are reimbursed to the employee for each day he is on a business trip, including weekends and non-working holidays, as well as for days en route, including during forced stops along the way. Moreover, as stated in the letter of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation dated December 3, 2009 No. 3-2-09/362 “On the procedure for accounting for the calculation of income tax on daily allowances as part of travel expenses,” the expenditure of daily allowances does not require documentary confirmation.

Thus, the calculation of daily allowance depends on the duration of the employee’s business trip, which the employer determines independently, based on the volume, complexity and other features of the official assignment. In addition, the employer must include in the general terms of the business trip the time the employee spends on the road, depending on the type of transport that the posted employee will use to get to the destination. It should be borne in mind that in accordance with clause 4 of the Regulations, the day of departure on a business trip is the date of departure of a train, plane, bus or other vehicle from the place of permanent work of the business traveler, and the day of arrival from a business trip is the date of arrival of the specified vehicle at the place permanent work. When a vehicle is sent before 24 o'clock inclusive, the day of departure for a business trip is considered the current day, and from 00 o'clock onwards - the next day. If a station, pier or airport is located outside a populated area, the time required to travel to the station, pier or airport is taken into account.

The day the employee arrives at his place of permanent work is determined similarly.

In case of a forced delay in transit, daily allowances for the delay are paid according to the decision of the head of the organization upon presentation of documents confirming the fact of the forced delay.

Neither the Labor Code of the Russian Federation itself nor the Regulations limit the duration of a business trip. In fact, this means that an employee’s business trip can be either one-day or long.

Day trip

Clause 11 of the Regulations states that when traveling to an area where the employee, based on the conditions of transport communication and the nature of the work performed on the business trip, has the opportunity to return daily to his place of permanent residence, daily allowances are not paid.

At the same time, taking into account the right granted to the employer by Article 168 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the organization may provide for the payment of such daily allowances in its collective agreement or in the regulations on business trips. True, their taxation is carried out in a special manner, but more on that later.

However, if there is a one-day business trip abroad, then the daily allowance in foreign currency is paid in the amount of 50% of the daily allowance determined by the company’s “internal” norms for business trips abroad.

The principles for paying daily allowances for trips abroad are determined by paragraph 18 of the Regulations. It follows from this norm that the date of crossing the border of the Russian Federation is paid according to the rules established for the state to which the employee is sent: when leaving the Russian Federation, daily allowances are paid in foreign currency, when returning to the Russian Federation - in rubles.

The same rules for the payment of daily allowances apply to cases where an employee is posted on the territory of two or more foreign states: daily allowances for the day of crossing the border between states are paid in foreign currency according to the standards established for the state to which the employee is sent.

Employees are living people, and it may happen that an employee gets sick while on a business trip. The regulations provide for such a scenario for the development of events on a business trip. As stated in paragraph 25 of the Regulations, daily allowances in this case are paid for the entire time until the employee, due to health reasons, is unable to begin fulfilling his official assignment or return to his place of permanent residence. True, this is only possible if you have a sick leave certificate issued in the proper order.

So, we have looked at the basic rules for paying daily allowances, now let’s move on to the issues of their taxation.

Daily allowance - other expenses of the taxpayer

Subclause 12, clause 1, art. 264 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation (hereinafter referred to as the Tax Code of the Russian Federation) it is determined that business trip expenses, including daily allowances, are recognized as other taxpayer expenses related to production and sales. Of course, provided that these expenses meet the criteria of Article 252 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, that is:

1) are related to the generation of income;

2) justified;

3) documented.

Moreover, from January 1, 2009, the amount of daily allowance paid when an employee is sent on a business trip is not standardized, as a result of which the organization has the right to take into account for profit tax purposes daily allowance in the amount of actual costs, the payment procedure - provided that their amount is fixed by the local regulatory act of the employer .

Regulatory authorities hold a similar opinion on this issue. In particular, this opinion is set out in letters of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated August 18, 2009 No. 03-03-06/1/533 and dated September 21, 2009 No. 03-03-06/1/604. The capital’s tax authorities also stand in solidarity with the financiers, as indicated by the letter of the Federal Tax Service of Russia for Moscow dated June 18, 2009 No. 16-15/061727.

Day trip

We have already mentioned above that an organization may decide to pay daily allowances for one-day business trips within the Russian Federation. Since the payment of such daily allowances is not provided for by the Regulations, this expense is not considered justified. Moreover, according to the opinion of the arbitrators, set out in the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated 03/04/2005 No. GKPI05-147 “On the dismissal of the application to invalidate the first sentence of paragraph 15 of the Instruction of the Ministry of Finance of the USSR, the State Committee for Labor of the USSR and the All-Russian Central Council of Trade Unions dated 04/07/1988 No. 62 “On on official business trips within the USSR”, daily allowances are paid to the employee provided that he lives outside his place of permanent residence for 24 hours, and if the employee has the opportunity to return daily to his place of permanent residence, then daily allowances are not paid to the employee.

An expense recognized as unfounded is not recognized as a taxable expense. This is indicated by paragraph 49 of Art. 270 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, according to which expenses that do not meet the criteria named in paragraph 1 of Art. 252 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

Thus, the organization will not be able to take into account for profit tax purposes daily allowances paid for one-day trips; therefore, the source of their coverage will be the company’s own funds remaining after taxation.

A similar conclusion is contained in the explanations of the tax authorities given in the letter of the Federal Tax Service of Russia for the city of Moscow dated February 10, 2006 No. 20-12/11312. The courts also agree with this point of view, as indicated by the resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the North-Western District dated March 1, 2006 in case No. A05-5899/2005-12.

The situation is different with personal income tax (NDFL).

Taxation on personal income

When subject to personal income tax, daily allowances are subject to rationing. Clause 3 of Art. 217 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation determines that when an employer pays a taxpayer expenses for business trips both within the country and abroad, the income subject to taxation does not include daily allowances paid in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation, but not more than 700 rubles. for each day of a business trip on the territory of the Russian Federation and no more than 2,500 rubles. for each day you are on a business trip abroad.

Thus, daily allowances in an amount not exceeding 700 rubles are not subject to personal income tax. for each day of a business trip within the country and 2,500 rubles. for each day you are on a business trip abroad. Moreover, these norms apply not only to employees of commercial firms, but also to employees of organizations financed from the budget. This was pointed out by the arbitrators back in 2005 in the decision of the Supreme Arbitration Court of Russia dated January 26, 2005 No. 16141/04 “On invalidating the letter of the Ministry of Taxes and Taxes of the Russian Federation dated February 17, 2004 No. 04-2-06/127 “On the taxation of compensation payments for reimbursement of expenses, related to business trips."

If an organization pays daily allowances in excess of its “internal” norms, then the excess amount is also recognized as taxable income of an individual, and, therefore, the organization must withhold personal income tax from the employee and transfer it to the budget [FOOTNOTE Similar explanations are contained in the letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated June 11 .2009 No. 03-04-06-01/133.].

By virtue of Art. 224 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, taxation of the excess amount is carried out at a rate of 13%. The organization is obliged to withhold the calculated amount of personal income tax directly from the employee’s income on the date of payment of income (daily allowance), the Ministry of Finance of Russia indicated this in its letter dated 02/01/2008 No. 03-04-06-01/27.

If we are talking about excess daily allowances paid to a posted employee in foreign currency, then the taxable income of an individual must be recalculated into rubles at the rate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation valid on the date of their payment, this is also indicated in the letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated 01.02.2008 No. 03 -04-06-01/27.

The standardization of daily allowances for personal income tax purposes applies only to daily allowances paid for business trips of employees and their trips to improve their qualifications. Other types of daily allowances are not subject to rationing for personal income tax purposes. This follows from paragraph 3 of Art. 217 Tax Code of the Russian Federation. Consequently, “traveling” daily allowances established by a collective agreement, other local act of the company or provided for in an employment contract are not subject to personal income tax in full.

Day trip

As to whether daily allowances paid to an employee for one-day trips are taxable income of an individual, Chapter 23 “Individual Income Tax” of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation does not contain a specific answer.

Nevertheless, tax authorities consider such payments as taxable income of an individual and require personal income tax withholding. Please note that arbitration practice on this issue is not clear-cut. Some courts agree with the arguments of the tax authorities, as evidenced, for example, by the resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the North Caucasus District dated May 19, 2009 in case No. A32-2910/2008-29/78-56/24. Others, on the contrary, consider the demands of controllers to be unlawful, as indicated, in particular, by the resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Central District dated May 27, 2008 in case No. A62-4451/2007.

Due to the fact that the issue of withholding personal income tax on daily allowances paid for one-day business trips is not regulated, the company will have to independently decide whether it will recognize these amounts as taxable income of an individual or not.

Insurance contributions for compulsory types of social insurance

As is known, from January 1, 2010, the unified social tax (UST) is not collected on the territory of the Russian Federation, since Chapter 24 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation has lost force. However, the abolition of the unified social tax did not actually lead to a reduction in the tax burden on the employer, since the UST, in fact, replaced insurance contributions, the procedure for calculation and payment of which is regulated by the norms of the Federal Law of July 24, 2009 No. 212-FZ “On Insurance Contributions to the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation, the Social Insurance Fund of the Russian Federation, the Federal Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund and territorial compulsory medical insurance funds (as amended on December 25, 2009; hereinafter referred to as Federal Law No. 212-FZ).

According to Federal Law No. 212-FZ, persons making payments and other remuneration to individuals are recognized as payers of insurance premiums:

For compulsory pension insurance;

Compulsory social insurance for temporary disability and maternity;

Compulsory health insurance.

In accordance with Part 2 of Art. 9 of Federal Law No. 212-FZ, when payers of insurance premiums pay expenses for business trips of employees, both within the territory of the Russian Federation and outside the territory of the Russian Federation, daily allowances are not subject to insurance premiums. Consequently, the payment of daily allowances for business trips does not entail the obligation for the employer to calculate the specified insurance contributions. Although it is possible that regarding one-day daily allowances, regulatory authorities will insist on their accrual. This assumption can be made based on the experience of collecting unified social tax.

Let us recall that during the period of payment of UST, an organization paying daily allowances for daily business trips had the opportunity not to accrue UST for such payments, guided only by the norm of paragraph 3 of Art. 236 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation (repealed from January 1, 2010). Today there is no such possibility, since Federal Law No. 212-FZ does not link the calculation of insurance premiums with the procedure for recognizing payments made in favor of individuals for profit tax purposes. This, in turn, means that insurance premiums must be calculated even on those payments that are not taken into account for income tax purposes.

Day trip

At least in Art. 9 of Federal Law No. 212-FZ states that daily allowances paid during business trips are not subject to insurance premiums, and in the amounts established by the “internal” standards of the company itself, but it is possible that in relation to daily allowances paid during one-day business trips, regulatory authorities will insist on the need to accrue them. This is exactly how things were previously with the taxation of unified social tax in terms of daily allowances paid for one-day trips, and arbitration practice on this issue was not unambiguous. For example, in the resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Volga-Vyatka District dated August 16, 2007 in case No. A28-1084/2007-3/29, it was stated that the payment of such daily allowances entails the obligation to accrue the unified social tax.

At the same time, in the decision of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the North-Western District dated March 13, 2008 in case A56-17909/2007, the court made the opposite conclusion.

So far, regarding the need to charge insurance premiums from daily allowances paid for one-day business trips, there are no official clarifications from regulatory authorities. Taking this into account, as well as the existing arbitration practice regarding the unified social tax, we can conclude that the non-accrual of insurance premiums from one-day daily allowances from organizations paying them is associated with increased risks.

And paradoxically, in Art. 9 of Federal Law No. 212-FZ “traveling” daily allowances are not mentioned. Consequently, their payment is subject to insurance premiums.

V. V. Semenikhin,
Head of the Semenikhin Expert Bureau

The economic activities of organizations are not always limited to one region and, accordingly, for certain official needs, company employees go on business trips to carry out official assignments. According to the provisions of Article 166 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, a business trip is a trip by an employee by order of the employer for a certain period of time to carry out an official assignment outside the place of permanent work*.

*The place of permanent work should be considered the location of the organization (a separate structural unit of the organization), the work in which is stipulated by the employment contract. The place of work is a mandatory condition for inclusion in the employment contract in accordance with the provisions of Article 57 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

The specifics of sending employees on business trips are established by the Regulations “On the specifics of sending employees on business trips,” approved by the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of October 13, 2008. No. 749.

Note:Business trips of employees whose permanent work is carried out on the road or has a traveling nature, business trips are not recognized.

Based on Article 167 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, when an employee is sent on a business trip, he is guaranteed:

• maintaining your job (position) and average earnings,
• and also - reimbursement of expenses related to business trips.

• travel expenses;
• expenses for renting residential premises;
• additional expenses associated with living outside the place of permanent residence (per diem);
• other expenses incurred by the employee with the permission or knowledge of the employer.

• or a collective agreement,
• or a local regulatory act of the organization.

Procedure for paying daily allowances for business trips within the country

• weekends and non-working holidays,
• as well as for days on the road, including during forced stops along the way.

• daily allowance not paid.

• distance range,
• transport conditions,
• the nature of the task being performed,

In accordance with paragraph 25 of Resolution No. 749, an employee in the event of his temporary disability, certified in the prescribed manner:

• expenses for renting living quarters are reimbursed (except for cases when the posted employee is undergoing inpatient treatment),
• daily allowance is paid

In addition, the employee is paid temporary disability benefits in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation.

Daily allowance for business trips abroad

According to paragraph 16 of Resolution No. 749, payment of daily allowances due to an employee in connection with a foreign business trip is carried out in accordance with the Federal Law of December 10, 2003. No. 173-FZ “On currency regulation and currency control.”

According to paragraph 9 of paragraph 1 of Article 9 of Law No. 173-FZ, foreign exchange transactions are allowed between residents when paying waste to individuals related to a business trip outside the territory of the Russian Federation.

That is, a Russian organization can issue daily allowance to an employee going on a business trip abroad in the currency of the country where he is going and this will not contradict the provisions of the current legislation.

Payment of daily allowance to an employee in foreign currency when the employee is sent on a business trip outside the territory of the Russian Federation is carried out in amounts determined by:

• collective agreement,
• local regulatory act (order, regulations on business trips, etc.).

• When traveling through the territory of the Russian Federation - in the manner and amount determined by the collective agreement or local regulations for business trips within the territory of the Russian Federation

• When traveling through the territory of a foreign state - in the manner and amount determined by a collective agreement or local regulations for business trips on the territory of foreign states.

• included in days for which daily allowances are paid in foreign currency.

• included in days for which daily allowances are paid in rubles.

When an employee is sent on a business trip to the territory of 2 or more foreign states, daily allowances for the day of crossing the border between states are paid in foreign currency according to the standards established for the state to which the employee is sent.

In accordance with paragraph 19 of Resolution No. 749, when sending an employee on a business trip to the territory of the CIS member states with which intergovernmental agreements have been concluded, on the basis of which border authorities do not make notes on crossing the state border in documents for entry and exit, the date of crossing the state border The borders of the Russian Federation when traveling from the territory of the Russian Federation and to the territory of the Russian Federation are determined by:

• according to the marks in the travel certificate, issued as for a business trip within the territory of the Russian Federation.

An employee who went on a business trip to the territory of a foreign state and returned to the territory of the Russian Federation on the same day is paid daily allowances in foreign currency in the amount of 50% of the rate of expenses for the payment of daily allowances established by the organization for business trips to the territory of foreign states.

When an employee is sent on a business trip to the territory of a foreign state, he is additionally reimbursed for:

• expenses for obtaining a foreign passport, visa and other travel documents;
• mandatory consular and airport fees;
• fees for the right of entry or transit of motor vehicles;
• expenses for obtaining compulsory health insurance;
• other mandatory payments and fees.

Daily allowances for employees working under civil contracts

Since the norms of labor legislation and other acts containing norms of labor law do not apply to employees working under a GPC agreement in accordance with the provisions of Article 11 of the Labor Code.

Accordingly, the guarantees and compensations provided for by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, including those related to business trips, apply only to employees who have entered into an employment contract with the organization and are not applicable in the case of a GPC agreement.

A similar rule is contained in paragraph 2 of Resolution No. 749:

• Employees who have an employment relationship with the employer are sent on business trips.

Therefore, in order not to increase the price of the GPC agreement (remuneration amount) by the amount of expenses associated with the business trip, as well as not to pay “extra” taxes, the possibility of paying compensation amounts to the executor of the assignment must be provided for in the GPC agreement.

Personal income tax on daily allowances

Such payments are not subject to personal income tax within the limits established by clause 3 of Article 217 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation:

When the employer pays the taxpayer expenses for business trips both within the country and abroad as income subject to taxation, daily allowances are not included, paid in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation, but:

• no more than 700 rubles for each day of a business trip in the Russian Federation,
• no more than 2,500 rubles for each day of travel abroad.

At the same time, according to paragraph 1 of clause 1 of Article 223 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, when receiving income in cash, the date of actual receipt of it is determined as the day of payment of income.

If an organization issues daily allowances in foreign currency, then it needs to check whether they have exceeded the established limit in rubles.

To do this, the amount of “foreign currency” daily allowance is recalculated into rubles at the rate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation in effect on the date of payment to the employee. And if the ruble equivalent exceeds the established norm (2,500 rubles per day), then the resulting difference must be withheld and transferred to the personal income tax budget.

Personal income tax on daily allowances for one-day business trips

However, no one is stopping the company from stipulating in its collective agreement or other local regulations compensation payments due to employees sent on one-day business trips.

At the same time, these amounts may not be subject to personal income tax up to 700 rubles if the business trip is on the territory of the Russian Federation and within 2500 rubles. - on business trips abroad.

This position was expressed by the Ministry of Finance in its Letter dated 03/01/2013 No. 03-04-07/6189 (this Letter is posted on the official website of the Federal Tax Service in the section “Explanations of the Federal Tax Service, mandatory for use by tax authorities”):

“With regard to compensation payments related to reimbursement of travel expenses, it should be borne in mind that in accordance with paragraph 12, paragraph 3, Article 217 of the Code, these payments, with the exception of daily allowances, are exempt from taxation within the limits of actual and documented target travel expenses to the destination and back, fees for airport services, commission fees, expenses for travel to the airport or train station at the places of departure, destination or transfers, for luggage transportation, expenses for renting living quarters, payment for communication services, obtaining and registering a service foreign passport , obtaining visas, as well as costs associated with exchanging cash or a bank check for cash foreign currency.

That is, in accordance with paragraph 3 of Article 217 of the Code, only daily allowances do not require documentary evidence of their use. In relation to payments that compensate for all other taxpayer expenses related to a business trip, documentary evidence of the expenses incurred is required to exempt them from taxation.

Thus, if the money paid to an employee when sent on a one-day business trip is not a daily allowance, but in accordance with Article 168 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation belongs to other expenses associated with a business trip made by the employee with the permission or knowledge of the employer, they can be taken into account as income exempt from taxation in full if there is documentary evidence of expenses incurred using the specified funds.

In the absence of documentary evidence of the above-mentioned expenses, funds paid to employees during one-day business trips in lieu of daily allowances may, in accordance with the Resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation dated September 11, 2012 No. 4357/12, be exempt from taxation up to 700 rubles. when on a business trip in the Russian Federation and 2500 rubles. while on a business trip abroad.”

The Ministry of Finance expressed a similar position in its Letter dated 03/05/2013 No. 03-04-06/6472.

The Ministry of Finance refers to the Resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Court of September 11, 2012 No. 4357/12, in which the court indicated that:

“Daily allowances are paid to employees when they are sent on a business trip to perform work functions outside their place of permanent work for a period of at least 24 hours and are intended to compensate for expenses associated with living outside their place of permanent residence.

When sending workers on a one-day business trip, from where the business traveler has the opportunity to return daily to his place of permanent residence, daily allowances are not paid, and the payments made are not daily allowances based on the definition contained in labor legislation.

At the same time, by virtue of Articles 167 and 168 of the Labor Code, the employee is reimbursed for other expenses associated with a business trip made with the permission or knowledge of the employer.

According to paragraph ten of paragraph 3 of Article 217 of the Tax Code (as amended in force during the disputed period), when an employer pays a taxpayer for business trip expenses, income subject to personal income tax does not include daily allowances paid in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation, but not more than 700 rubles for each day of a business trip in the Russian Federation.

In relation to the provisions of this norm, the amount of compensation paid by the employer for one-day business trips, which is not included in taxable income, is also limited to the amount of 700 rubles.

Thus, the amounts paid are not daily allowances by virtue of the definition contained in labor legislation, however, based on their focus and economic content, they can be recognized as reimbursement of other expenses associated with a business trip, made with the permission or knowledge of the employer, and therefore are not income (economic benefit) of the employee.”

Business trip – temporary sending of an employee to another city in order to fulfill instructions from management. It allows an employee to grow up the career ladder, gain experience and skills, improve their qualifications, learn how to conduct business negotiations and other opportunities.

But in addition to this, it is formed from the budget of an employee who went on a business trip, which must be compensated by the employer.

According to the general norms of the Labor Code, there is certain limits on daily expenses expenses that may be incurred while away from the workplace.

Determination of daily allowances in accordance with the law

The official definition of the concept of “daily allowance” is in the legislation. According to the provisions, daily allowances constitute additional expenses for an employee to live in another location.

That is, when an employee goes on a business trip, his salary is retained in full, and the employer also undertakes to compensate for expenses incurred during the departure process. In practice, an employee can count on daily allowance only if he spent on a business trip more than one day, that is, he had to look for accommodation for the night outside the house.

The concept of “daily allowance” includes several main cost groups:

• accommodation in another city associated with the direct rental of residential premises (renting an apartment, room, hotel, hotel);
• eating in catering establishments, buying food in a supermarket;
• travel by public transport - ship, train, bus, car, plane to the destination, as well as movement within its boundaries and the costs of returning to their homeland;
• business lunch with partners, attending events that are planned to improve the work of the company in which the employee works;
• other expenses associated with the direct fulfillment of labor obligations.

In practice, there was often confusion regarding which expenses should be included in the daily allowance and which expenses could be considered unnecessary. If certain limits are taken into account, this problem can be solved quickly.

Reimbursement of daily expenses is carried out every employee who goes abroad. Their return implies taking into account the entire time the employee is on a business trip. This includes not only working days from Monday to Friday, but also worked weekends, holidays, including days on the road, forced stops.

If we are talking about one-day trips outside the work area, then they are not compensated in Russia. However, within the framework of local regulations, the employer has the opportunity provide for organization this process for similar trips. After all, even if an employee leaves for a day, he incurs certain expenses that are subject to mandatory reimbursement.

General procedure for reimbursement of expenses looks like that:

• when an employee goes on a business trip, the employer informs him of the limits;
• the employee goes on a trip and spends money in accordance with the limits;
• upon returning to the workplace, the employee provides evidence of expenses (travel tickets, receipts);
• business trip expenses per day are multiplied by the number of days spent outside the permanent place of residence and are paid together with the required wages for this period.

At some enterprises, the procedures for reimbursement of expenses may be different, but the general essence remains the same.

Regulatory acts

The general amounts of daily payments related to business travel expenses are regulated by the Labor Code, in particular by Article 168. According to these standards, when sending an employee to carry out an assignment, the employer undertakes to compensate additional expenses.

According to the legislation in force since January 1, 2016, employers, as before, are obliged to pay these amounts. Their size is determined independently and subsequently fixed in the relevant local acts of the organization. For example, this could be the Business Travel Regulations.

Size in Russia and abroad

In practice, in accordance with Art. 217 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, assumed certain maximum dimensions, which do not imply the accrual of personal income tax.

1. If we talk about expenses in Russia, there is a limit 700 rub.
2. If an employee goes on a business trip abroad - 2500 rub.

That is, if an employee went on a business trip from Moscow to Krasnoyarsk and spent 1000 rubles per day, then 300 rubles are subject to taxation. And if he went to Europe, then he can spend 2,500 rubles.

If you spend an amount in excess of this limit, for example, 3,000 rubles, the remaining portion (500 rubles) is subject to payment of tax.

According to the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 729, there is regulation of the accrual of all travel payments. This document also prescribes a fixed amount of charges for daily expenses for trips within Russia.

For 2018, the average daily allowance for each employee is 100 rubles. This process is regulated by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 812. There is a special annex to this document that regulates payments in accordance with the calculation for each country.

Standards for a day trip

According to the law, the minimum period of business trip not regulated. Sometimes traveling on behalf of an employer may be one-day. After arrival, the employee undertakes to report for the trip.

The employer reimburses him for all expenses, but these amounts (for example, travel, food) must be agreed upon in advance. The law, as already mentioned, states that mini-trips do not require per diem payments.

But here it’s a matter of the employer’s conscience: to leave the employee completely without money, even if it is legal, or to set limits on his own. If the employer still plans to reimburse the employee for some expenses, this may be some fixed amount.

How to calculate

Happens in absolutely every enterprise establishing daily expenses for business trips, while the amount of expenses is determined by local acts. If we take into account the calculation and execution of these payments, there is several key features.

A business trip is temporary travel of an employee to another city, carried out on the basis of a written order given by the director. The government decree established general rules and procedures, in which the employee is sent on a business trip.

As already noted, expenses associated with a business trip include such areas as travel to the place of fulfillment of obligations, rental of residential premises, average earnings during a business trip, and additional living expenses allowed by the manager.

In 2018, travel expenses are paid in day of accrual, in accordance with the requirements of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

What changes occurred in 2018

The main changes that affected this area affected the daily allowance for determining the base of insurance premiums. To the calculation base insurance premiums for injuries are not included. The amount of daily travel expenses in 2018 is not subject to taxes in the amount of 700 rubles for the Russian Federation, and 2,500 rubles if the employee is sent abroad. But if the organization has set the daily allowance at 1000 rubles, then from 300 rubles. Personal income tax will be withheld.

The determination of the standard for travel expenses in 2018 was carried out solely to calculate the base, which is regulated by the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. This includes insurance premium and income tax.

Legislative provisions not prohibited establishing an individual daily allowance that would be higher than the limit amount. In this case, tax and insurance fees are simply paid on the excess amount.

Additional information is provided in the video below.