From 1st January 2026, the employer’s maximum contribution towards meal vouchers will increase from EUR 6.91 to EUR 8.91, while the employee’s minimum contribution will remain at a minimum of EUR 1.09. In practice, the face value of meal vouchers could therefore rise from EUR 8 to EUR 10 per working day.
This Royal Decree applies solely to the social security exemption threshold. At this stage, no tax provisions have yet been adopted to align with the new maximum amount, although such an adjustment is expected soon.
Once this fiscal alignment is confirmed, it will be interesting to see which sectors choose to update their amounts. For those that do not, employers will still have the option to increase the value of meal vouchers at company level.
