The Inland Revenue has extended the approval under which the CLA allowance for subsistence expenses is exempt from payroll tax.
CLA
These are the allowances paid by employers to drivers under Article 40 of the collective agreement for professional road haulage and mobile crane hire. The allowance covers costs incurred by the driver en route for meals, other refreshments and sanitary facilities. The amount of the allowance, as well as the net and gross part of the allowance, depends on the duration of the trip(s).
Approval
The main rule in payroll tax is that all reimbursements and benefits in kind by employers to employees are considered taxed wages. However, an exemption applies to the costs of temporary stay in the context of employment and more than incidental business meals. The question is whether the reimbursements described above under the CLA for professional freight transport meet the conditions of this exemption. To avoid discussion on this point (the stakes for the sector are hefty), the Inland Revenue approved the application of the exemption. That approval ran until the end of 2025, but has now been extended until the end of 2029.
NOTE: For the exemption to apply, the allowances paid must comply exactly with the conditions of the collective agreement.