For which period can I claim meal allowances?

For the first three months after moving into a second home, you can claim meal expenses as income-related expenses or business expenses. However, it is not possible to claim the actual costs, only flat rates, the amount of which depends on the duration of your absence from your main home. The following flat rates apply for an absence of:

• 24 hours: 28 Euro
• 8 to 24 hours: 14 Euro

From the fourth month, you can no longer use the meal allowances.

The three-month period starts anew if you move your employment and second home to a new location. The period also restarts if your employment away from home is interrupted by a temporary assignment at another workplace. This temporary assignment must last for at least four weeks. If you change employers at the place of employment away from home, a new three-month period for claiming meal allowances does not begin.