Fuel vouchers are a popular salary extra for their employees in many companies, especially in regions where many (have to) commute to work by car. Employers give employees paper fuel vouchers that can be redeemed at certain petrol stations. Some petrol station operators now also offer reloadable cards as petrol vouchers.
In the past, the legislator has repeatedly adjusted the regulations for the use of the fuel voucher by the employer. Since the beginning of 2022, a higher tax allowance applies to the non-cash benefit, which is usually used to pay for the fuel voucher. This was raised from 44 euros to 50 euros per month. This means that employers can support their employees with up to 50 euros per month free of tax and social security contributions. Therefore, they are a welcome financial relief for commuting employees.
But what about employees who don't have a car or don't use it often? The use of fuel vouchers does not benefit the entire team. It is also not a good choice in terms of climate protection to explicitly promote driving. That is why there is now a modern alternative in the form of the mobility budget, which brings decisive advantages for both employees and employers and can be used equally for all employees.
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For many employers, fuel vouchers are a convenient way to provide financial relief to their employees, assuming that a large proportion of employees will benefit from them. Therefore, employers like to offer them as an additional salary extra and use them as an employee benefit for higher employee retention.
The tax-free employer fuel allowance for employees comes in paper form, as a fuel card or as digital credit and can be redeemed at participating petrol stations. Since the fuel vouchers for employees fall under the non-cash benefit and the tax allowance in this regard has been increased from 44 euros to 50 euros since 2022, employers can support their employees with up to 50 euros per month free of tax and social security contributions. Therefore, they are a welcome financial relief for commuting employees.
As an alternative to classic fuel vouchers, there are fuel cards from individual petrol station chains. A fuel card works in a similar way to a conventional credit card. Employees use it at the petrol station by inserting it at the card terminal or using it contactless. The costs are then debited directly from a pre-determined account. This allows companies to manage expenses transparently.
Advantages for employers
Advantages for employees
There are three ways to offer fuel vouchers to employees:
Companies purchase vouchers (maximum 50 euros each) from a petrol station chain and hand them out to employees. These vouchers can be redeemed at a specific petrol station chain or a group of petrol stations. Vouchers are only valid for the month in which they are granted. Vouchers granted retroactively or in advance are not possible.
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Disadvantages:
Companies can also issue fuel cards from a petrol station chain to their employees. These cards are special reloadable prepaid cards that can only be used to purchase fuel at petrol stations. They are often linked to a specific network of petrol stations. It should be noted that the fuel card should be limited to a maximum of 50 euros per month so that the benefit in kind can be granted tax-free.
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Disadvantages:
As an alternative to classic fuel vouchers and fuel cards, companies can offer their employees a flexible mobility budget. Employees can spend this budget not only on refuelling, but also use it for public transport, sharing offers or bicycle and car subscriptions. The fuel credit is provided via a virtual prepaid card in the app of the mobility budget provider.
Advantages:
Both fuel cards and fuel vouchers are often linked to certain petrol station chains or networks. There is usually no such thing as a fuel voucher for all petrol stations. It is important to check the acceptance points in advance. However, mobility budget providers such as NAVIT cooperate with several partners and offer fuel cards that can be used at different petrol station chains.
Up to an amount of 50 euros per month, fuel cards and fuel vouchers are not subject to tax and duties as employee vouchers if they are granted as a benefit in kind or via the benefit in kind. If the value of the fuel voucher exceeds 50 euros, taxes and duties are due on the entire amount.
The only exception to employee vouchers are attentions on personal occasions. Employers can issue vouchers with a value of no more than 60 euros tax-free up to three times a year. Gifts to employees over 60 euros are in turn taxable.
Employers can deduct the fuel voucher or fuel card as a business expense or business-related benefit in kind for tax purposes. Thus, when providing fuel vouchers and cards, companies not only benefit from better employee retention, but also from tax advantages.
Our mobility experts at NAVIT would love to share their knowledge with you about the new mobility product. Feel free to get in touch with us!
Get infoEmployer allowances such as fuel cards and fuel vouchers are tax-free if they are applied as a benefit in kind and do not exceed the monthly tax allowance of 50 euros. This means that employees receive a fuel voucher or fuel card tax-free if they are granted a benefit in kind by their employer in addition to their regular salary that does not exceed 50 euros. Fuel vouchers may not be paid out as salary conversion or as cash wages.
The limit of 50 euros is also a total gross limit, i.e. if employers grant both a fuel voucher and another benefit in kind (e.g. gym membership), the costs of both benefits must be added together. If the monthly exemption limit of 50 euros is exceeded, (flat-rate) taxes and duties are due on the employee benefits given out. The conditions for the tax-free fuel voucher are regulated in § 8 para. 2 sentence 9 EstG (Income Tax Act).
The administrative burden of fuel vouchers and a growing number of employees who forgo the use of a car and thus do not need a fuel voucher make the classic fuel voucher less attractive. Alternatively, companies can offer their employees a more comprehensive mobility budget that can be used flexibly for all different means of transport. A flexible mobility budget not only reduces the administrative burden for the employer, but is also a more democratic mobility benefit than a fuel voucher, because it benefits all employees equally. For commuters who still travel by car, mobility budget platforms also offer the option to use the mobility budget for fuel cards.
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