Tax-Free Employee Benefits 2026: Meal Allowance and Co Compared
1. Why tax-free benefits beat a pay rise
A rise in pay loses the larger part on the way to the team. 100 € more per month costs the company about 120 €, because social security comes on top. The employee keeps about 55 €, depending on the tax bracket. The rest goes to tax and social funds.
A tax-free benefit in kind works differently. What the company pays arrives in full. 50 € on a card is 50 € of buying power per month. Through payroll the same effect costs about 110 €, twice as much.
The second point is visibility. A rise of 100 € gross is signed once and fades into the payslip. A meal allowance shows up on every working day. The role of food in the package is set out in our guide to employee catering.
All tax-free employee benefits share one condition. They must flow on top of the pay that is owed. Cutting salary in exchange is ruled out for all six models here.
2. The benefits at a glance
Six models cover daily life in many firms. The meal allowance leads. The company adds up to 7.67 € per working day to lunch. Of that sum 4.57 € is the taxable value of a meal for 2026, the other 3.10 € sits on top, free of tax.
The benefit card is the second model. Up to 50 € per month stays free, as long as the card buys goods and no cash. The amount lapses each month. How card and allowance differ is shown in our comparison of meal vouchers and the meal allowance.
The travel allowance is the third. If the company pays for bus and train on top of wages, the subsidy stays free of tax, with no cap in the law. The level follows the price of the local ticket.
Company health promotion follows as the fourth model, with 600 € per person and year. Courses on posture, food and stress belong here. A gym membership does not.
Two occasions round off the list. A small gift for a special event stays free up to 60 €, for a birthday or the birth of a child. The company party allows 110 € gross per person, for up to two events per year. Both hang on a date and do not carry the working week.
3. The comparison by value per year
Monthly figures mislead. Only the sum across twelve months shows which model carries daily life and which stays an extra.
Figure 1: Tax-free value per person and year by benefit, in euros. The meal allowance is counted with 15 working days per month and lands at about 1,381 €. The benefit card reaches 600 €, company health promotion also reaches 600 €. The company party brings 220 €, small gifts bring 180 €.
The maths on the meal allowance is short. 7.67 € per working day times 15 working days is 115.05 € per month. Times twelve months that is about 1,381 € per person and year. 15 days is a careful basis, because many firms count 18 to 20 working days. At 20 days the sum would be about 1,841 €.
The other values are fixed. The card brings 600 € per year, company health promotion also brings 600 €. Two parties at 110 € gross make 220 €, three small gifts at 60 € make 180 €. The meal allowance thus lands at twice the level of the next model.
The travel allowance is missing in the chart, because the law sets no fixed cap. Its value follows the ticket and swings widely by city. How allowance, canteen and catering compare is covered in our article on canteen, catering and meal allowance.
Plan catering for your team
- Lunch for the office that fits the 7.67 € allowance
- Fixed delivery days for two to five office days
- Net price per head shown clearly
- Receipts per working day for payroll
4. Why the meal allowance is used most often
The meal allowance works on every working day. A lunch in the city costs about 10 to 14 €. With 7.67 € the company carries the larger share of it. The effect shows on the day of payment, not in next month's payslip.
Uptake is high, because nobody has to learn anything new. The team buys as before and uploads the receipt. The rest runs through the provider and payroll. How to use the 7.67 € per day in full is shown in our article on the meal allowance of 7.67 €.
The third reason is hybrid work. The allowance follows the person, not the building. In the office it goes to the shop next door, at home to the food that is bought. A canteen stands idle when only two days are staffed. Fitting models are shown in our article on office catering for hybrid teams.
That leaves the effort. About 15 receipts come in per person and month. Providers check them by machine, and payroll sees only the sum per person.
5. What companies get wrong in practice
The first mistake sits with the records. Without a receipt per working day the tax break falls away. One receipt for the week is not enough, because the tax office wants one meal per day. A crate of water or a pack of coffee is not a meal.
The second mistake is days out of office. Holiday, illness and travel do not count as a working day. Whoever books 15 payments in a month with 6 days of leave corrects it later at some cost. The number of payments has to match the days in the office.
The third mistake is the mix with a canteen. An allowance for food in the own building is judged differently from one for food outside. Staff meals in hospitality follow own rules, as our article on staff meals in hospitality shows. Running both in parallel without a clean split leads to a back payment.
The fourth point is the flat tax rate. A share above the limit can be taxed at a flat 25 percent instead of going fully onto the payslip. That costs the company money, yet keeps the amount free of social security. At two or five days in the office the sums differ, as our comparison of two and five office days shows.
6. Choice and next steps
The choice hangs on three points: the number of days in the office, the offer nearby and the effort in payroll. At three to five days in the office the meal allowance carries furthest. At one day per week the card with 50 € is the calmer choice.
Figure 2: Rollout in four steps. In week 1 the need is set, with 7.67 € per working day as the target. In week 2 the model is chosen, counted with 15 days per month. In week 3 and 4 payroll joins in, with the taxable value of 4.57 € as the base. From week 5 the rollout runs, and the first payslip follows in the month after.
Four steps are enough for the rollout. Week 1 holds the need: number of staff, days in the office and sites. In week 2 the model is chosen, with 7.67 € per working day as the target and 15 days per month as the basis.
In week 3 and 4 payroll joins in. It settles records, days out of office and the posting of the taxable value of 4.57 €. From week 5 the rollout runs with a short mail to the team. If warm food should reach the office too, you find the formats in our office catering.
A company party within the 110 € limit
- Gross costing per person including technology
- Formats for up to two events per year
- Quote with every item listed for accounting
Conclusion
Tax-free employee benefits deliver more per euro than a rise in pay. At 15 working days the meal allowance brings about 1,381 € per person and year. Card and company health promotion sit at 600 € each, the company party at 220 € and three small gifts at 180 €.
The order is therefore clear. The lunch allowance comes first, the card with 50 € covers the days without office. With clean records per working day and days out of office deducted, the 7.67 € per day stay free of tax.
FAQ
Which employee benefits are tax free in 2026?
Six models are common in practice: the meal allowance up to 7.67 € per working day, the benefit card up to 50 € per month, the subsidy for bus and train, company health promotion up to 600 € per year, small gifts up to 60 € per occasion and the company party with 110 € gross per person.
How much does the meal allowance deliver per year?
At 15 working days per month it is 115.05 € per month and about 1,381 € per year. Whoever counts 20 working days lands at about 1,841 €. Both values apply per person and stay free of tax and social security.
What is the difference between the taxable value and the meal allowance?
The taxable value of 4.57 € is the amount the state assigns to a lunch. The meal allowance of 7.67 € is the sum a company may add per working day, free of tax. The gap of 3.10 € is the part above the taxable value.
How high is the limit for the benefit card?
It sits at 50 € per month and thus at 600 € per year. The limit has a hard edge: at 51 € per month the full amount becomes taxable. Unused amounts cannot be pushed into the next month.
What are the tax rules for the company party?
Per person and event 110 € gross stay free, for up to two events per year. The sum must include every cost, so venue, technology and travel. A third party in the same year is taxed in full.
Can salary be converted into tax-free benefits?
No. All six models require the benefit to flow on top of the pay that is owed. Cutting pay by 100 € against a benefit in kind of 50 € is therefore ruled out. Payroll settles the single case.
