An entrepreneur settling tax under the tax scale or the flat tax (podatek liniowy) can include in costs expenses on a trip connected with the business: travel, lodging, conference fees and the per diem — the latter only up to the amount due to public-sector employees, i.e. in 2026 PLN 45 per 24-hour day of a domestic trip. Under ryczałt (lump-sum tax on recorded revenue), costs are not deducted, and a reimbursement from the client is ordinary revenue. Below we explain how to calculate and document this.
When a trip is a "business trip"
The regulations do not define a business trip of an entrepreneur and do not require a travel order of the kind issued to employees. Whether the expenses are a cost is decided by the general rule: they must be incurred in order to generate revenue or to protect its source and must be properly documented. In practice it is worth keeping:
- the invitation, the agenda of the meeting or the conference programme,
- correspondence with the client concerning the trip,
- a declaration of the start and end times of the trip (needed for per diems),
- invoices and receipts for travel, lodging and fees.
A trip combined with holidays does not exclude the settlement, but only the part related to the business can be included in costs — e.g. the flight and the hotel for the time of the conference, without holiday overnights.
Per diems — limit and calculation
The PIT Act does not allow the entrepreneur to include in costs per diems in the part exceeding the employee per diems set out in the regulation on business trips. The same limit applies to co-working persons.
Domestic trip
- per diem: PLN 45 per 24-hour day,
- trip up to 24 hours: below 8 hours — no per diem, 8–12 hours — 50%, over 12 hours — 100%,
- longer trip: for each full 24-hour day 100%, and for a started day up to 8 hours — 50%, over 8 hours — 100%,
- meals provided reduce the per diem: breakfast by 25%, lunch by 50%, dinner by 25%.
Foreign trip
The rates depend on the destination country and are given in a currency — e.g. Germany EUR 49, Italy EUR 53, United Kingdom GBP 45, USA USD 59 per day. For an incomplete day the per diem is: up to 8 hours — 1/3 of the per diem, over 8 up to 12 hours — 50%, over 12 hours — 100%. Provided meals reduce the foreign per diem by 15% (breakfast), 30% (lunch) and 30% (dinner). Amounts in foreign currency are converted into zloty at the NBP average rate from the working day preceding the incurring of the cost.
What else is a travel cost
| Expense | Cost in PIT | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| air, rail, bus tickets | yes | invoice or ticket with proof of payment |
| hotel or apartment overnight | yes, at the actual amount | VAT on accommodation services is not deductible |
| taxi, public transport, parking, motorway | yes | for parking and motorway — link to the route of the trip |
| conference or training fee | yes | usually with deductible VAT |
| meals in restaurants | not separately | covered by the per diem; VAT on catering services is not deductible |
| visa, travel insurance | yes, if the trip is a business one | confirmation of the purpose of the trip is important |
The lump-sum lodging allowance without a receipt, provided for employees, does not apply to the entrepreneur themselves — only the actually documented expense counts.
Car on a business trip
Where a passenger car is in the company's register of fixed assets and also serves private purposes, as a rule 75% of the expenses on its use can be charged to costs (the Act excludes 25% from costs). The situation is different for a private car not entered into the company: only 20% of the expenses on its use and insurance are costs. Full deduction is available only for a car used exclusively in the business, which requires additional conditions to be met, including keeping a mileage log.
Ryczałt: reimbursement from the client is revenue
Under ryczałt (lump-sum tax on recorded revenue) no costs are deducted, including travel costs. If the B2B client reimburses the flight or hotel expenses, the reimbursement is as a rule part of the remuneration for the service — it goes on the invoice and increases the revenue taxed under ryczałt (for VAT it is part of the taxable base of the service). What ryczałt rate to apply to re-invoiced expenses is worth agreeing with the accountant before issuing the invoice. A comparison of forms of taxation is in the article on ryczałt and its rates.
Example: two days in Berlin
Mr Adam, a developer on the flat tax (podatek liniowy), flies to a meeting with a client in Berlin: the plane takes off from Poland on Tuesday at 5:00, and on the return journey lands in Poland on Wednesday at 21:00. The time of the foreign trip, counted from take-off to landing, is 40 hours: one full 24-hour day and 16 hours, so he is entitled to two full per diems of EUR 49. The hotel provided one breakfast, which reduces the per diem by 15% of EUR 49, i.e. by EUR 7.35. He includes in costs:
- per diems: 98 − 7.35 = EUR 90.65, converted at the NBP rate from the preceding day,
- air tickets and transport to the airport on the basis of invoices,
- the hotel at the gross amount from the invoice — without deducting VAT,
- public transport in Berlin on the basis of tickets and payment confirmations.
If Mr Adam settled under ryczałt, none of these expenses would reduce his tax.
Most common mistakes
- A per diem "by default" for every trip — a short trip under 8 hours in Poland does not give the right to a per diem.
- Overlooking meals included in the hotel price — breakfast included in the overnight stay reduces the per diem, even if the entrepreneur did not use it.
- Deducting VAT on hotel and restaurant — the VAT Act expressly excludes this; the hotel goes to costs at the gross amount.
- Food receipts as a separate cost — meals during the trip are covered by the per diem, and adding restaurant receipts doubles the same expense.
- No proof of the purpose of the trip — a ticket alone does not show the link with the business; in case of an audit, the agenda, correspondence or invoice for a service provided to the client is what counts.
- Per diems under ryczałt — a ryczałt payer has no costs, so calculating per diems does not reduce their tax.
How Good Balance can help
As part of simplified accounting, we settle business trips: we calculate domestic and foreign per diems, convert currencies and make sure that the documents meet the requirements. When choosing the form of taxation, we help assess whether, with frequent trips, the tax scale or the flat tax (podatek liniowy) is more profitable than ryczałt — more about the scale in the article on the general rules.