What is the current value of meal vouchers, childcare vouchers, and cultural vouchers offered by employers?

Starting with the first semester of 2025, several updates have been made to the values of vouchers that can be offered as an extra-salary benefit by employers to their employees.

Order No. 484/280/2025 establishing the indexed nominal value of a meal voucher for the first half of 2025 updates the value of meal vouchers that can be offered as a benefit by employers to their employees. More specifically, it concerns:

• For the first half of 2025, starting in April 2025, the nominal value of a meal voucher cannot exceed 40.18 lei (compared to the previous value of 40.04 lei).
• This nominal value also applies to the first two months of the second half of 2025, namely August 2025 and September 2025.

Meal vouchers are extra-salary benefits offered to employees by employers in the form of vouchers, which any employer can grant to their employees on a monthly basis as an individual food allowance. They are only available in electronic format and can only be used in Romania, within their validity period and only for the purchase of goods and services for which they were issued. Meal vouchers are granted monthly based on the number of working days actually worked by employees.

Meal vouchers are subject to 10% income tax and 10% health contribution (CASS), being exempt from 25% CAS and 2.25% CAM. From a profit tax perspective, meal vouchers are deductible when calculating profit tax.

Order No. 486/287/2025 on establishing the indexed monthly amount granted in the form of nursery vouchers for the first half of 2025 updates the value of nursery vouchers that can be offered as a benefit by the employer to its employees. More specifically, it refers to:

• For the first half of 2025, starting in April 2025, the monthly amount granted in the form of nursery vouchers is 670 lei (compared to the previous amount of 660 lei).
• This nominal value also applies to the first two months of the second half of 2025, namely August 2025 and September 2025.

Daycare vouchers are extra-salary benefits offered to employees by employers in the form of vouchers granted monthly to employees, with the aim of partially or fully covering daycare fees or early preschool education services. These are only available in electronic format and can only be used to pay for daycare fees.

Daycare vouchers are subject to 10% income tax and are not subject to mandatory social contributions. Please note! Any amount exceeding this ceiling of 670 lei will be taxed accordingly. From a profit tax perspective, these vouchers represent social expenses and are deductible up to 5% of salary expenses.

Order 361/2,680/2025 on establishing the indexed amount to be granted in the form of cultural vouchers for the first half of 2025 updates the value of cultural vouchers that can be offered as a benefit by employers to their employees. More specifically, this refers to:

• For the first semester of 2025, the amount granted monthly or occasionally in the form of cultural vouchers is a maximum of 220 lei/month (the same as in the second semester of 2024) and a maximum of 450 lei/event (up from 440 lei in the previous semester).
• This nominal value also applies to the first two months of the second half of 2025, namely August 2025 and September 2025.

Cultural vouchers are extra-salary benefits offered to employees by employers in the form of vouchers granted to employees, monthly or occasionally, to pay for cultural goods and services such as: season tickets or tickets to shows, concerts, museums, festivals, fairs and exhibitions, theme parks, books, school textbooks, music albums, films, etc. They are only available in electronic format and can only be used to pay for cultural goods and services.

Cultural vouchers are subject to 10% income tax and are not subject to mandatory social contributions. From a corporate income tax perspective, these vouchers are deductible from corporate income tax up to a limit of 5% of staff salary expenses.

In conclusion, these vouchers can be a differentiating factor in the extra-salary benefits package offered by employers. They demonstrate the company’s concern for the well-being of its employees beyond strictly professional aspects.