VAT assessment of employee catering in company-owned and externally managed canteens

• Many companies offer their employees the option of using a canteen for healthy meals
• Umsatzsteuerliche Besonderheiten (special tax considerations) need to be taken into account when making this decision
• The tax considerations depend on whether the canteen is company-owned or managed by an external party
• It is important to determine whether the meals are provided in the employer’s interest or for the employee’s private needs
• Mistakes in the assessment can lead to unexpected VAT payments
• A company-owned canteen is defined as one where the meals are either prepared by the employer or significantly processed or supplemented before being given to the employees
• If a corporate canteen is managed by a subsidiary company, it can be considered company-owned

Source: datenbank.nwb.de

Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.

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