There are various situations and circumstances in which an employee works away from home for an extended period of time. First, it must be determined whether a new primary place of work is established at the new location. If this is not In this case, it is considered out-of-town work. The principles governing the reimbursement of travel expenses apply.
Additional meal expenses are deductible only for 3 months at the flat-rate amounts.
- After 48 months, the deduction for lodging expenses or the cost of an apartment at the location of the out-of-town assignment (in accordance with the rules on maintaining two households) is limited to €1,000 per month.
- For work performed off-site, travel expenses are fully deductible (if applicable, at a flat rate of €0.30 per kilometer traveled). The following examples illustrate the distinctions that must be taken into account.
Practical Example (Deployment of Employees at Multiple Construction Sites):
A contractor assigns his employee to a large construction site in Essen. The employee works there from February 27 to September 29. He then works at another construction site. The employee travels directly from his home to the construction site each time, without stopping by his employer’s place of business. Consequence: The employee does not have a primary place of work at the large construction site in Essen. He works at constantly changing locations and therefore performs work away from his home base, which must be reimbursed in accordance with travel expense guidelines.
Practical Example (Long-Term Assignment):
The employer has an employee working at its branch office in Bonn. The employer is transferring this employee to Munich for three years so that he can adapt the branch office there to the changed structural conditions. Consequence: The assignment to Munich is temporary, so the employee will be working off-site for the entire duration.
- Meal allowances can be reimbursed tax-free only for the first 3 months.
- Travel expenses are fully deductible, specifically for trips between Bonn and Munich and from the place of lodging in Munich to the branch office and back.
- The employer covers the cost of housing. The limit of €1,000 per month, which applies in cases of maintaining two households, is only in effect if the 48-month period is exceeded.
Practical Example (Extension of a Secondment):
An IT specialist is employed at his employer’s branch office in Bonn. The employer assigns this employee to its branch office in Hamburg for three years to set up a new IT system there. Shortly before the three-year period expires, the assignment is extended by 15 months due to technical difficulties. The 48-month period is not exceeded because the date of the extension is what matters.
Consequences: The assignment in Hamburg was planned to last 36 months, or 3 years. This is a key factor. The 15-month extension does not result in a continuous period of 48 months, so the Hamburg office does not become the primary place of work. Thus, despite the extension, the work in Hamburg constitutes out-of-town work that continues throughout the entire period.
Work performed away from the employee’s usual place of work may also extend over a longer period of time. This is the case, for example, when an employer temporarily assigns an employee to another work location. The costs for lodging or housing at the work location are considered business-related overnight stays,
- if the employee stays overnight at a work location,
- which is not his primary place of work.
Actual expenses for lodging may be deducted. In the case of long-term work at the same out-of-town work location, the deduction for lodging expenses is limited after 48 months have elapsed. As with maintaining two households, the maximum deduction is then limited to €1,000 per month. If the work at the same location is interrupted, the 48-month period starts over if the interruption lasts at least 6 months.