Daily allowance for business trips in 2021

Registration has become easier

Also, by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of December 29, 2014 No. 1595, adjustments were made to certain legal acts regulating the performance of official assignments outside the place of work. Innovations are aimed at optimizing the flow of documents in the organization, reducing and simplifying such document flow.

Thus, since January 2015, the mandatory requirement has been abolished:

on issuing a travel certificate to an employee;
formalization of the official assignment in writing.

According to the newly established rules, the fact of being on a business trip is confirmed by tickets and/or other travel documents.

It is also possible for an employee to use personal transport for business purposes (on a business trip). To confirm such expenses, he must provide reporting documents: receipts, cash receipts, statements, waybills, etc.

The main goals of changes in business travel arrangements in 2017 and earlier were:

simplification of document flow when sending on a business trip;
improving the form of the report based on the results of completing the task by order of the employer.

In addition, according to the new rules, an employee sent on a business trip is not required to provide his superiors with a written report on the trip.

Daily allowance rates for business trips abroad

A commercial company independently determines the amount of daily allowance for foreign business trips.

However, for budgetary institutions, daily allowance standards are established by the Government of the Russian Federation (Resolution No. 812 dated December 26, 2005).

There are private companies that, in their regulations on travel expenses, indicate that when traveling abroad, daily allowances are paid in the amount established for budgetary institutions by the Government of the Russian Federation - Resolution No. 812 of December 26, 2005 “On the amount and procedure for paying daily allowances in foreign currency and allowances for daily allowance in foreign currency for business trips to the territory of foreign countries.”

You can also copy the Table with the calculation of daily allowances for business trips abroad from this Decree to your disposal. This will make it convenient to find the amount of daily allowance when traveling on a business trip.

Or a company may tailor its regulations to account for the remoteness and financial situation of the foreign country.

Key document in 2021

According to the same decree of the Government of the Russian Federation (No. 1595 of December 29, 2014), in 2021 business trips are issued on the basis of a written decision of the employer - an order, a directive. These changes to business travel in 2021 should already become a habit.

Keep in mind: business trips now include not only business trips on the instructions of the employer outside the place where the employee performs his official duties, but also trips to a structural unit of the enterprise (branch, representative office, etc.). It is located separately at a different address, in a different locality. Including within the administrative territory in which the employer’s organization is registered.

For more information about this, see “A separate division of an organization: what is it?”

The simplified business trip procedure does not require extensive paperwork, however, changes introduced to the legislation require more thorough documentary evidence of the costs incurred. This is done in order to control the financial activities of the enterprise. As a consequence, there is a complication in accounting for the property and financial position of the organization and its results.

The daily allowance is set by the organization

A business trip is a business trip of an employee outside the place of permanent work to carry out an official assignment (Article 166 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Employees sent on a business trip must be reimbursed (Article 168 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation):

travel expenses;
housing rental costs;
daily allowance – additional expenses associated with living outside your permanent place of residence;
other expenses incurred on a business trip in agreement with the administration.

The amount of daily allowance is not regulated by current legislation and remains at the discretion of the employer (Part 4 of Article 168 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Typically, when setting daily allowances, organizations are guided by daily payment limits that are not subject to personal income tax and insurance contributions. Let us remind you that daily allowances up to 700 rubles/day for business trips within the Russian Federation and 2,500 rubles/day for business trips abroad are not subject to personal income tax and insurance contributions. However, linking the amount of daily allowance to the limit is not a dogma, and it can be set at any amount. The main thing is that they should not be less than the daily payments established for institutions financed from the budget (the daily allowance for employees of federal institutions is 100 rubles) (for more details, see “Daily allowance in 2017”).

Cost structure

Accounting transactions and reports on travel expenses are subject to the requirements of the Law; business trips in 2021 were not affected by changes in the structure of expenses. This still includes:

earnings calculated on the basis of the average daily salary for the entire period of the official trip;
payment for tickets for travel to the destination in the forward and return directions by air, railway, bus (except for taxi);
compensation for expenses for the use of a subordinate’s own car when performing an official assignment as part of a business trip;
hotel expenses (accommodation fees) or rental expenses;
additional costs (this may include shoe repair, dry cleaning of clothes, purchase of goods and components for equipment, entertainment expenses).

Compensation for living expenses occurs in 2 ways:

according to the documents provided - receipts, invoices;
management allocates a clearly fixed amount established by the internal rules of the enterprise.

Also see “Travel Regulations: What the 2021 Model Should Look Like.”

Payment procedure

At each enterprise, daily payment standards are set individually. Management, based on current legislation, can change the amount of payments every year depending on the financial condition of the company.

These amounts must be specified in the order or memo of the enterprise. Depending on the status of the employee and the region of travel, a differentiated approach may be applied when calculating payments.

Daily allowances in 2021, as in previous periods, are taken into account in the institution’s expenses. If there is a noticeable increase in such payments, then management may become interested in this fact, so there should always be arguments at hand confirming all expenses incurred. Although documentary evidence of the money spent is not provided for in the current legislation.

The main change in 2021

Please note that the main change for business travel in 2021 affected daily allowance rates, which were not previously established for insurance premiums.

From January 1, 2021, insurance premiums are not charged only for a certain fixed amount of daily allowance:

700 rubles – for business trips within the Russian Federation;
2500 rubles – for foreign business trips.

However, please note that the Labor Code of the Russian Federation does not contain any restrictions on the employer’s right to set certain daily allowance rates when sending personnel on business trips to perform official assignments.

In 2021, an enterprise can independently determine the amount of daily allowance, which is also provided for in Art. 346.16 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation (subparagraph 13, paragraph 1), and enshrine them in their internal acts. In this case, the organization deducts insurance premiums from the difference between the standard and the actual amount of daily allowances issued.

For more information about this, see “How per diem is assessed in insurance premiums from 2021.”

Daily allowance for a business trip in Russia

Ulyana works as a department head in an IT company and is going to a conference in St. Petersburg for five days. Accountant Anna paid her a daily allowance of 800 rubles for each day. Do I need to calculate personal income tax and contributions?

Yes, according to Art. 217 and art. 422 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, daily allowances are exempt from taxes and contributions when they fit into the amount of 700 rubles

for each day you are on a business trip in Russia.
Anna must calculate personal income tax and insurance premiums from an amount of 500 rubles (800 rubles * 5 days - 700 rubles * 5 days)
.

How to calculate daily allowance when crossing the border

Calculation of daily allowances at the “foreign” rate begins on 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 daily allowances for such business trips are 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 of which it is included.

Daily allowance when traveling within Russia and abroad

The norm for daily travel expenses in 2021 is established by law. The daily allowance for government organizations is 100 rubles . The minimum allowable daily allowance for travel expenses for commercial organizations should not be less than the daily allowance paid by government organizations, that is, also equal to 100 rubles.

The maximum daily allowance for commercial organizations is established on the basis of the permanent internal Regulations on the Kyrgyz Republic (travel expenses) or a one-time order issued. But in accordance with the current tax legislation of the Russian Federation, the maximum amount of expenses per day not subject to personal income tax (personal income tax) is: the amount of business trips in 2021 in Russia - 700 rubles per day , travel expenses abroad in 2021 - 2,500 rubles per day . Payment is made for each day, including if weekends and holidays fall during this period.

The limit on travel expenses for 2021 in Russia is not limited by law, but if the maximum values of 700 and 2,500 rubles are exceeded, respectively, the amount exceeding these maximum values is subject to personal income tax.

Travel accounting

If the head of a company sends an employee on a business trip, he must reflect the following transactions in business accounting:

Dt 71 Kr 50 – payment of travel allowances to the employee is reflected;
Dt 71 Kr 51 – reflects the transfer of travel allowances to the salary card;
Dt 10, 20, 23, 25 Kr 71 - assignment of the amount of expenses for remuneration of labor on a business trip;
Dt50, 51 Kr 71 – refund of unused amounts was made.

Failure to pay travel allowances to employees, as well as failure to pay any other mandatory transfers in the form of wages, benefits, partially or fully for organizations, is punishable by a large fine.

In order to calculate salaries during a business trip, an accountant must focus on the current regulatory framework.

How to calculate daily allowance when traveling abroad