Does the meal allowance have a minimum or maximum limit?

9 de June, 2025

The meal allowance, also known as food subsidy, is an extra-wage benefit that is highly valued by workers in Portugal. This supplement to salary is granted by companies in order to support employees with their food expenses.

Whether it’s paid in a meal card or in cash (with the monthly salary), the food allowance can give rise to some doubts among workers. One of these questions has to do with the limits on the amounts granted by employers.

But is there a minimum limit that companies should consider? And a maximum? Come and find out with us.

Read also: Meal allowance: Everything you need to know

Does the food allowance have a minimum or maximum limit?

In the case of public administration workers, the value of the food allowance has been set at €6.00/day since 2023 (Order no. 107-A/2023 of April 18).

In the private sector, however, payment of the allowance is not mandatory under the Labor Code. It is only paid if it is included in an individual or collective employment contract.

Therefore, as there is no obligation to do so, companies that grant this benefit to their employees are free to set the amount allocated.

What is the limit on the amount exempt from taxation?

Since the food allowance is a social benefit, it has a different tax framework to the salary.

Depending on the allocation format and the amount allocated, both the company and the employees may have tax advantages associated with it. The employer can have total exemption from TSU and the employee can have total exemption from TSU and IRS.

This applies if the amounts awarded and the award formats were as follows:

• In cash: up to a maximum daily amount of 6€;
• On a meal card (social voucher): up to a maximum daily amount of €10.20.

The tax-free amount of meal cards is 70% higher than cash payments, which allows companies to maximize their employees’ net income without increasing the tax burden.

What happens if the exemption limits are exceeded?

Let’s imagine an employer who gives his employees a 10€/day food allowance.

If this amount is given via a meal card, the employee receives the full amount (22 days x 11 months = €2,420.00 per year).

On the other hand, if the same €10/day were given in cash, along with the monthly salary, the respective IRS and TSU charges above €6 (i.e. the remaining €4) would apply. Assuming an average rate of 22% IRS and 11% TSU, the total annual amount is €2,100.56, i.e. €319.44 less than with a card.

If you want to know more about how much you can save per year by receiving your food allowance in card form, do your simulation here.