Can I Claim Business Travel as a Business Expense in France?
Yes. Transport, hotels and subsistence for real business trips are deductible. The VAT you can reclaim depends on the type of cost, so keep the invoice for each item.
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What Direction générale des Finances publiques (DGFiP) says
Travel is deductible when it is for the business and supported by a document that shows the purpose, the dates and the amount. Train, plane and taxi tickets, hotel bills and meals during a trip are all company costs. The VAT rate on these services is not the same everywhere. Passenger transport, accommodation and restaurant services are among the supplies taxed at the 10% intermediate rate, and the VAT shown on the invoice is what counts. Whether the company can deduct that VAT depends on the item and on the BOFiP rules, so the best approach is to book the VAT shown on the invoice and let your expert-comptable decide what goes on the CA3. A trip that mixes business and private days is split: only the business days are a company cost. Trips outside France are treated the same way for income tax, with the invoice kept in its original currency and converted at the rate used by the bank. If staff travel, the company can reimburse their costs on submission of receipts, which are not pay when they are real business costs. For an owner, reimbursed costs must also be real and documented, because the tax office tests whether the company is paying for private holidays.
When you can claim
- Train, plane, taxi and ride-hailing fares for business journeys
- Hotel stays for meetings, events or client work
- Meals and subsistence during a business trip
- Conference tickets and travel to trade fairs
- Parking and tolls for business trips
- Travel insurance for the business trip
When you cannot claim
- Private holidays, even when a work call was made
- Travel for family members who are not part of the business
- Upgrades and extras with no business purpose
Good to know
Pro tip: Write the purpose of the trip on the receipt or in the transaction note on the day. Remembering six months later is not good enough for an audit.
Important: Foreign-currency receipts should show the amount and the exchange rate the bank used, so the euro figure in the books matches the statement.
Related expenses
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