The Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy is working intensively on a draft legal act amending the regulation on the receivables due to an employee in a state or local government budgetary unit for a business trip. Although the regulation in question applies directly to public sector employees, the provisions contained therein also impact the private sector.
1. Planned change to the national daily allowance rate
The legislator plans to increase the national daily allowance rate to PLN 60 per day of travel. In the current legal status, an employee receives PLN 45 per day of business trip within Poland. This means that the amount of the national per diem will be increased by as much as PLN 15. This is a significant change which also affects the calculation of other benefits relating to domestic business trips, i.e.:
- the maximum amount of reimbursement for accommodation – this can’t exceed twenty times the national daily allowance rate for one hotel night;
- a flat-rate for accommodation for an employee who hasn’t been provided with free accommodation and who hasn’t submitted an accommodation bill – this amounts to 150% of the daily allowance;
- a lump sum to cover the cost of travel by local transport, provided that the employee doesn’t incur any travel costs – this constitutes 20% of the daily allowance.
2. Proposed changes to the currency of daily allowances for certain countries
There are plans to change the currency used for daily allowances for business trips to Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Australia and Canada. As indicated in the explanatory memorandum to the draft regulation: ″The Deputy Governor of the National Bank of Poland (NBP – Narodowy Bank Polski) has requested a change in the currency of the daily allowance for the business trip and in the accommodation limit for travel to Scandinavian countries to EUR, and for business trips to Australia – to USD. (….) For certain currencies (essentially the AUD), NBP has noted little interest for a long while. At the same time, the current situation on the international market, related to the suspension of the sale and purchase of national currencies by the central banks of the Scandinavian countries, has resulted in the unavailability of these currencies in the form of cash. This means that once the NBP’s Scandinavian currency holding (NOK, SEK and DKK), it will be impossible to replenish them. Consequently, it’s necessary to change the currency of daily allowances for business trips to Nordic countries and to Australia. Simultaneously, at the request of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the currency for the accommodation limit and the daily allowance for business trips to Canada has also been changed.”
The change in the currency in which daily allowances are paid to the above-mentioned countries is accompanied by a change in their rates. The new rates are as follows:
- Norway – from NOK 496 to EUR 56;
- Sweden – from SEK 510 to EUR 64;
- Denmark – from DKK 446 to EUR 67;
- Australia – from AUD 95 to USD 79;
- Canada – from CAD 71 to USD 61.
3. Planned change in the amount of daily allowances for certain countries
The rates of daily allowances for business trips to certain countries (other than those indicated above) are also to change. These include:
- Belarus – from EUR 42 to EUR 45;
- Czech Republic – from EUR 41 to EUR 45;
- United Kingdom – from GBP 45 to GBP 50;
- Countries other than those listed in items 1–114 of the Annex to the Regulation – from EUR 41 to EUR 45.
4. Change to the accommodation limits
The legislator also plans to change the amounts of accommodation limits. The changes will include, among others, the limits applicable in:
- Belgium – from EUR 200 to EUR 250;
- France – from EUR 200 to EUR 250;
- the Netherlands – from EUR 150 to EUR 200;
- Germany – from EUR 170 to EUR 220.
5. Transitional provisions
The draft provides that, in the case of a business trip commenced but not completed before the date of entry into force of the new provisions, receivables for business travel shall be determined:
- for travel time occurring before the date of entry info force of the amending regulation – on the basis of the existing provisions;
- for travel time occurring from the date of entry into force of the amendments – on the basis of the provisions as amended by the amending regulation.
Zmiana przepisów ma wejść w życie po upływie 14 dni od dnia ogłoszenia.
6. Legal notice
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