Per diem
Flat-rate allowance covering an employee's meal and lodging costs on business trips, exempt from social contributions within the URSSAF scales.
Definition
The per diem is a flat-rate allowance paid to an employee on a business trip to cover their meal costs and, on extended assignments away from home, lodging. Unlike reimbursement of actual costs, it is paid without expense receipts: only the trip itself must be proven. It is exempt from social contributions within the limits of the URSSAF scale, whose principles are set by the BOSS (Bulletin officiel de la Sécurité sociale, France’s official social security bulletin).
In detail
The 2026 URSSAF scale sets the following exemption limits:
- Restaurant meal while travelling: €21.40.
- Meal outside a restaurant while travelling: €10.40.
- Meal at the workplace (shift work, staggered hours): €7.50.
- Extended assignment (lodging and breakfast, during the first three months): €76.60 in Paris and the 92, 93 and 94 departments, €56.80 elsewhere. The scale becomes degressive beyond three months.
Within these limits, the allowance is deemed used in accordance with its purpose: no restaurant receipt or hotel invoice to produce. Beyond them, the excess is added back into the contribution base, unless the employer demonstrates factual circumstances.
The choice between per diem and actual-cost reimbursement structures the travel policy. The flat rate appeals through simplicity: no receipts to collect, a predictable cost. Actual costs, backed by a business card and a digital expense report, become preferable when expenses regularly exceed the caps or when the company wants to recover VAT, impossible on a flat rate without an invoice, as our article on the tax optimisation of expense reports points out. The topic is explored further in our guide to the per diem in business travel and our expenses and expense reports white paper.
The per diem is finally distinct from the mileage allowance, which covers the use of the personal vehicle and not travel subsistence, and from the titre-restaurant (France’s meal voucher), which cannot be combined with a meal allowance for the same meal.
Frequently asked questions
Per diem or actual-cost reimbursement: which to choose?
The per diem simplifies administration: no expense receipts, a predictable cost. Actual costs win out when expenses regularly exceed the URSSAF caps or when the company wants to recover VAT, which requires invoices. Many companies combine the two: flat rate for routine trips, actual costs on a business card for expensive assignments.
Is the per diem subject to social contributions?
No, as long as it stays within the limits of the URSSAF scale, for example €21.40 for a restaurant meal while travelling in 2026, and the travel situation is genuine. The fraction exceeding the scale is added back into the contribution base, unless the employer justifies particular circumstances.
Related terms
- Expense report, the actual-cost reimbursement circuit, the alternative to the flat rate
- Mileage allowance, the flat rate dedicated to personal-vehicle use
- Titre-restaurant, the everyday meal benefit, not combinable with a meal allowance
