In our blog we have already touched on the topic of calculating and paying daily allowances for business trips. Today we will talk about how to solve these problems if an employee goes on a business trip abroad.
Why do they pay per diem at all
An employee who goes on a business trip is entitled to a daily allowance. This is money that will allow him to pay expenses that arise because for some time he will be forced to do work out of his city.
How much daily allowance should I pay when traveling abroad
There are no rules regulating the payment of a certain amount of daily allowance. That is, the employing company can independently determine how much daily allowance to pay when traveling in Russia and abroad and in what currency. You can even set the amount of daily allowance for a business trip abroad in the currency of a certain country, and make the payment in rubles at the current rate.
Do not forget that after a certain limit there is a need to pay personal income tax. According to the rules for 2019, in case of a foreign business trip, the amount of daily allowance, which will not be taxed, is 2,500 rubles. Therefore, if a company decides to pay an employee 6,000 rubles, then taxes will be withheld from 3,500 rubles above the limit.
How to calculate daily allowance when crossing the border
Calculation of daily allowance at the “foreign” rate begins from the day of crossing the border. The principle of the country of arrival applies here – if after the journey an employee finds himself outside of Russia, then he must be paid at the rate established for the country of residence. To record the fact of crossing the state border, it is carried out using the stamps of border guards in the foreign passport.
If a business trip covers several countries, then the daily allowance for such business trips is paid at the rates established for each country. The day of arrival in a new country must be paid at the rate for that country or region it is included in.
Conclusion
According to the Russian Labor Code, the employer is obliged to pay daily allowances for each day of a business trip. To correctly calculate daily allowance you need to follow simple rules:
- Daily allowance at the “foreign” rate must be calculated based on the principle of arrival – the money must be paid at the rate for the country where the employee will end up at the end of the day.
- To avoid the need to pay personal income tax, the amount of daily allowance for foreign trips should not exceed 2500 rubles.
- For different countries, the amount of daily allowance may be different, you need to pay based on of where the employee will be after completing the journey on a particular day.
