The consumption voucher becomes a corona bonus
October 2021 – In mid-2020, the government launched the consumption voucher. Employers could grant a bonus to their employees, free of tax and social security contributions, up to a maximum amount of 300 euros. A year later, the government is proposing a new edition of this bonus (now called the "corona bonus"), but is also forced to make some changes to the consumption voucher.
300 euros in consumer vouchers
Assuming that the worst was behind us, the government decided in mid-2020 that employers could grant consumption vouchers to their employees. The maximum amount of these vouchers was 300 euros. The vouchers were not subject to personal income tax or social security contributions and were deductible for the employer.
The main conditions to be met were as follows:
the voucher is not granted as a replacement or conversion of remuneration, bonuses or any other benefit, whether or not liable to social security contributions;
the maximum face value per paper voucher is 10 euros, with an absolute maximum of 300 euros. If this absolute maximum is exceeded, the employer loses the benefit of the advantageous scheme entirely (and therefore not only for the part that exceeds this maximum);
the cheque is in the worker's name.
The main obstacle to the consumption cheque was probably its use. The underlying idea was to support the sectors that had suffered most from the first wave of the coronavirus. The vouchers could only be used in the hotel and catering sector, in small shops/SMEs that had been forced to close because of the coronavirus (such as bookshops, hairdressers or beauty salons), in the cultural sector and in (recognised) sports associations.
Cheques had to be issued before 1 January 2021, except for cheques issued to workers in the health sector, for which the deadline was 30 June 2021.
Initially, the cheques were only valid until 7 June 2021 (i.e. one year after the horeca was able to reopen following the March 2020 lockdown). However, as the hotel and catering industry was soon forced to close its doors again in the autumn, the validity of the consumer vouchers was extended to 31 December 2021. But this date was also changed at the end of July 2021!
Corona bonus with 500 euro consumer vouchers
In July 2021, the government repeated the exercise, this time with the corona bonus. It is in fact once again a possibility to distribute consumer vouchers to staff, but this time up to a maximum of 500 euros. So there are many similarities, but there are also some striking differences.
A first similarity is that the employer can grant the bonus, but is not obliged to do so. The decision is taken either at sectoral level or at the level of the individual company itself.
Like the first vouchers, the new vouchers do not fall under the notion of remuneration (which means that they do not count as severance pay, for example).
A first difference with the 'old' vouchers is the employer's contribution of 16.5%: the vouchers are still exempt from tax and social security contributions for the employee, but they are subject to a special employer's contribution of 16.5% for the employer. Both the premium and the contribution are a deductible expense for the employer.
A second important addition to the old consumption cheques is that the employer can issue the cheques if the company has achieved good results during the crisis. What is meant by "good results" is not specified anywhere. So can't a company that has had a negative result due to the coronavirus crisis give a bonus to its employees who have worked 200% hard? The question remains open.
The bonus of 500 euros should be issued in the form of consumption vouchers. These must, if issued on paper: a) be nominative, and b) state the period of validity. The face value per cheque may not exceed 10 euros. Fortunately, issuers offer cheques in electronic form, so these restrictions disappear.
The period during which you, as an employer, can grant a corona bonus runs from 1 August 2021 to 31 December 2021. It is therefore to be expected that many employers will only decide what to do at the end of the year, once they have a clearer idea of the figures.
The new consumer vouchers remain valid until 31 December 2022. Like the old consumer vouchers, they can only be spent in establishments that have been particularly hard hit by the coronavirus crisis. However, this list has been expanded somewhat, among other things by removing the SME requirement for the retail trade. In practice, practically all traders, catering establishments, contact professions, cultural institutions and sports associations can now accept cheques... if they so wish. Because these establishments are not obliged to accept consumer cheques.
What about the old cheques?
Are the old vouchers less attractive than the new ones? No. When the corona bonus was introduced, the best conditions of use (the period of validity until 31 December 2022 and the wider range of establishments) were also granted to the old cheques from the outset: consumer cheques issued in 2020 are therefore also valid until 31 December 2022.
Company directors
Please note: the exemption from social security contributions and income tax applies only to consumption vouchers issued to employees. Self-employed company directors do not fall under this status. If you grant consumption vouchers to a company director, this will be treated as ordinary remuneration.
