Expense claims in Belgium: employer's own costs, mileage allowance and VAT in 2026

When is an expense refund free of ONSS contributions?

An expense refund is not pay if it covers costs that belong to the employer: it is then free of contributions to the ONSS (Office national de sécurité sociale, the National Social Security Office). According to the ONSS instructions, three conditions must be met: the costs arise from the employment relationship, they are actually incurred, and their amount is proven by receipts. If challenged, the employer bears the burden of proof, and anything above actual costs is pay.

Flat rates are accepted for small costs that are hard to prove. The employer must be able to justify the flat rate and show it is plausible for the job (work rules, internal memo or annex to the contract), respect the maximum amounts and not mix actual costs and flat rates for the same type of expense; refunding twice is never allowed. For tax purposes, allowances that do not exceed those the State pays its own staff (mileage, stays in Belgium, trips abroad) are a non-taxable refund.

Mileage allowance 2026: how much for a private car?

For a business trip in their own car, an employee can receive up to €0.4452 per km from 1 October to 31 December 2026, free of contributions and tax. The employer may instead apply an annual amount of €0.4761 per km for the whole period from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027. The ONSS also accepts these amounts for home-to-work journeys; for tax purposes, they cover business trips, and refunds of commuting costs follow other rules.

The two amounts play different roles:

• €0.4452 per km is the quarterly amount. Since 1 October 2022, the mileage allowance for federal civil servants has been recalculated every quarter; the fourth-quarter 2026 amount (circular No 771, Belgian Official Gazette of 29 September 2026) was adopted by the ONSS on 2 October 2026 as the exempt maximum.
• €0.4761 per km is the annual amount. Set for the period from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027 (circular No 767; tax circular 2026/C/76), it is also accepted. An employer who chooses it applies it until 30 June 2027 and cannot switch back to the quarterly amount during the period.

The car must not belong to the employer or be financed by it, and the flat rate covers all vehicle costs. For each trip, keep the date, route, purpose and distance. Example: for 600 km of business travel in November 2026, the maximum exempt refund is €267.12 under the quarterly system (600 × 0.4452) or €285.66 under the annual one (600 × 0.4761).

By bike, the ONSS accepts €0.37 per km for business trips if the bike or speed pedelec belongs to the employee; for cycling to work, the tax exemption is capped at €0.37 per km and €3,700 for 2026 income. A car provided by the employer follows other rules: see company cars in Belgium.

Business trips in Belgium and abroad: which daily allowances?

For a business trip in Belgium lasting at least 6 hours, the tax standard for meal costs is €22.08 a day since 1 September 2026, if the meal is not paid for by the employer or a third party and not taken in a staff restaurant. It can be paid up to 16 times a month, and the employer's share of any meal voucher granted for that meal is deducted from it (circulars 2026/C/35 and 2026/C/83).

For the ONSS, the flat rate without receipts for a stay in Belgium remains €35 a night: above that, you need invoices.

For a trip abroad, the employer may pay the flat daily allowance that the SPF Affaires étrangères (Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs) grants its own staff, set per country (ministerial decree of 14 July 2025, amounts applicable since 1 August 2025). Category 1 applies to trips of up to 30 days, category 2 beyond 30 consecutive days. Examples given in circular 2025/C/70: €95 a day in France (category 1), €103 a day for a return trip to Breda in the Netherlands.

• Since 1 January 2025, a same-day return trip gives the full allowance, with no 10-hour minimum, and departure and return days are paid in full.
• The allowance is reduced by 35% if the employee does not pay for lunch, and by 45% for dinner.
• Accommodation and travel are refunded on receipts.
• For the ONSS, it must be a genuine business trip by an employee in a sedentary job, and the income from the work abroad must be taxable in Belgium.

Example: a 3-day trip to France, with lunch paid by the client on day 2. The maximum allowance is 3 × €95 = €285, minus 35% of €95 (€33.25), so €251.75.

Meal vouchers and eco vouchers: what are the 2026 caps?

Since 1 January 2026, the employer's contribution to a meal voucher can reach €8.91, and the employee's must be at least €1.09: a voucher can therefore be worth €10. The increase is not automatic. The collective labour agreement (CCT, convention collective de travail) or the individual agreement must be amended, and an individual agreement may not exceed the value set by the company CCT or the maximum set by a sector CCT.

The number and value of meal vouchers appear on the payslip and in the individual account; the number is adjusted no later than the last day of the month following the quarter. For tax, the employer deducts €4 per voucher if its contribution reaches €8.91, otherwise €2 at most (vouchers granted from 1 January 2026, circular 2026/C/30). If the employer also refunds an actual meal on the same day (except breakfast), the employer's share of the voucher is deducted once from that refund; with a flat-rate meal allowance, combining both is only accepted if the working day exceeds 8 hours and a second meal is proven.

Eco vouchers are still available, with a product list updated on 1 June 2026 (CCT No. 98/12 of 24 February 2026). Phasing them out, as planned in the 2025-2029 government agreement, is only a proposal: the CNT (Conseil national du travail, the National Labour Council) gave its opinion No. 2.498 on 22 September 2026. To work out the number of vouchers from days worked, see from time clock to payroll in Belgium.

VAT on expenses and e-invoicing: what can you recover?

VAT on food, drink and accommodation is in principle not deductible, except for staff who deliver goods or perform services outside the business, or for a business that resells those same services. VAT on entertainment costs, tobacco and spirits (unless resold or used for tasting) is not deductible either (Article 45, § 3, of the VAT Code). For car costs (purchase or lease, fuel, maintenance), deduction is capped at 50% and limited to actual business use if lower (Article 45, § 2).

For corporate income tax, 31% of restaurant costs and 50% of entertainment costs and business gifts are not deductible (Article 53, 8° and 8°bis, of the 1992 Income Tax Code).

Since 1 January 2026, a VAT-registered business established in Belgium issues a structured e-invoice, exchanged in principle via the Peppol network, for its supplies to another Belgian VAT-registered business (Law of 6 February 2024). What this means for expense claims:

• the employee gives the company's VAT number to the Belgian supplier, so that the invoice reaches the Peppol inbox;
• a till receipt is not enough when the customer is a business: an invoice must be issued in addition to the receipt;
• if the supplier issued a PDF or paper invoice with all the legal details, deduction cannot be refused for that reason alone, but fines remain possible;
• a business without the technical means to issue or receive a structured invoice faces a fine of €1,500, then €3,000 and €5,000 (a new offence only counts as a second or subsequent one if it is established at least 3 months after the previous one).

How long must expense receipts be kept in Belgium?

Keep invoices and copies for 7 years from 1 January of the year after they are issued (Article 60, § 3, of the VAT Code), and the books and documents relevant to income tax until the end of the 7th year or 7th financial year after the taxable period (Article 315 of the 1992 Income Tax Code). Throughout that period, the authenticity, integrity and legibility of the documents must be guaranteed; for an e-invoice, keeping the original XML file is recommended. A business established in Belgium keeps its invoices in Belgium, unless it stores them electronically in a way that guarantees full online access in Belgium (Article 60, § 2, of the VAT Code).

Write the expenses policy into an enforceable document: work rules, internal memo or annex to the contract. State the types of expense, flat rates, caps, required receipts and filing deadlines, and keep the document available for the ONSS.

Common mistakes

• Treating the tax standard for accommodation (€165.60 a night) as a flat rate without receipts: without proof, the ONSS only accepts €35 a night.
• Switching from the annual mileage amount to the quarterly one mid-period: choosing the annual amount binds the employer until 30 June 2027.
• Raising meal vouchers to €10 without amending the CCT or individual agreement: the voucher becomes pay.
• Refunding a restaurant till receipt as if it were an invoice: the business customer must receive an invoice, and VAT on the meal stays non-deductible.
• Paying an expense claim on a PDF when the same expense also arrives via Peppol: risk of a double refund and double booking.
• Forgetting to cut the travel allowance by 35% (lunch) or 45% (dinner) when the meal is provided.

Your checklist

• Write the expenses policy (types, flat rates, caps, receipts, deadlines) into the work rules, an internal memo or an annex to the contract.
• Choose the mileage system, quarterly or annual, and stick to it until 30 June 2027 if you choose the annual one.
• Require the date, route, purpose and distance for every trip.
• Amend the CCT or agreement before raising the employer's share of meal vouchers to €8.91.
• Check the €250 cap on eco vouchers per employee per year.
• Separate non-deductible VAT (meals, hotels, entertainment) and limit VAT on car costs to 50%.
• Ask staff to give the company's VAT number to Belgian suppliers, then match Peppol invoices with expense claims.
• Keep invoices and receipts for 7 years, intact and legible.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• ONSS, administrative instructions 2026/3, expense reimbursements (in French)
• ONSS, interim instructions (mileage allowance for Q4 2026, in French)
• SPF Finances, circular 2026/C/76 (mileage allowance, in French)
• SPF Finances, circular 2026/C/83 (subsistence costs in Belgium, in French)
• SPF Finances, circular 2025/C/70 (business trips abroad, in French)
• ONSS, administrative instructions 2026/3, meal vouchers (in French)
• ONSS, administrative instructions 2026/3, eco vouchers (in French)
• SPF Finances, Article 45 of the VAT Code (in French)
• efacture.belgium.be, general B2B FAQ (in French)
• efacture.belgium.be, specific FAQ (penalties, right to deduct, in French)

This guide sets out the general rules in force on 5 October 2026. It is not legal advice for your situation (collective agreement, sector, employee status).