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V0562-21 11 March 2021 · SG de Impuestos sobre la Renta de las Personas Físicas Criterion in force
IRPF · estimación directa

Sole proprietors cannot apply diet allowance or foreign work exemption

A self-employed individual asks whether they can claim diet allowances for overseas travel or exemption for work abroad. The DGT responds that both provisions apply exclusively to employees under a labour relationship.

The question raised

Whether the per diem regime for travel abroad (Article 9.A.3 of the RIRPF) may be applied in their case, taking into account the difficulty in their case of obtaining supporting invoices for the expenses incurred (meals, accommodation, etc.) in the various countries to which they travel, which comply with the requirements legally demanded by Spanish regulations.

The DGT's ruling

The per diem regime under Article 9 of the Regulations applies only to employees with an employment relationship. For self-employed individuals, only subsistence expenses are deductible within the per diem limits, provided they are paid by electronic means. Lodging expenses must comply with the general deductibility requirements of the economic activity. The exemption for work performed abroad under Article 7.p) of the Personal Income Tax Law (LIRPF) is also not applicable to the self-employed due to the absence of an employment relationship.

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