In July, August and September 2026, one meal voucher may be worth up to 45 lei. This is the statutory ceiling, not an amount every employer must grant. If you receive 20 vouchers at the maximum value, 900 lei is loaded onto the card, while the related taxes are withheld from your cash salary.
Meal vouchers form part of the health contribution and income-tax bases. No pension contribution is withheld on their value. The example separates the 900 lei on the card, cash reaching the bank account and taxes attributable to the benefit.
The 45 lei ceiling applies through September 2026
Law no. 201/2025 states that the nominal value of one meal voucher cannot exceed 45 lei. The rule applies to entitlements for November 2025, the first half of 2026, and July, August and September 2026.
An employer may choose a lower value. Law no. 165/2018 provides that the employer and union or employee representatives set the types of vouchers granted, their frequency and value. Your collective agreement, internal rules or benefits notice shows what the company decided.
For staff in public institutions and authorities, Article XIX of Law no. 141/2025 suspends value vouchers in 2026, except nursery vouchers. The example below concerns an employee whose employer grants meal vouchers.
The number of vouchers follows eligible days worked
The monthly value equals the number of vouchers multiplied by the value of each one. For 20 eligible days at 45 lei per day, the calculation is 20 × 45 = 900 lei.
Law no. 165/2018 limits the monthly number to days worked. The amount may therefore differ from month to month even when each voucher remains worth 45 lei. Absences and situations treated separately under the grant rules may reduce the number loaded; check your timesheet and payslip, not only the working days in the calendar.
Taxes on 20 vouchers worth 45 lei each
The scenario uses July 2026 income, an 8,000 lei gross salary, a full-time main job and no dependants. The employee claims no income-tax exemption, child deduction or relief for people under 26. At this income level, no basic personal deduction applies, so the voucher effect appears without another threshold.
| Measure | No vouchers | 20 × 45 lei | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross salary | 8,000 lei | 8,000 lei | 0 lei |
| Loaded onto meal card | 0 lei | 900 lei | +900 lei |
| CAS, pension contribution | 2,000 lei | 2,000 lei | 0 lei |
| CASS, health contribution | 800 lei | 890 lei | +90 lei |
| Income tax | 520 lei | 601 lei | +81 lei |
| Net cash salary | 4,680 lei | 4,509 lei | -171 lei |
| Cash salary plus vouchers | 4,680 lei | 5,409 lei | +729 lei |
The card receives 900 lei, but cash salary falls by 171 lei. The difference consists of 90 lei in CASS and 81 lei in income tax. After those deductions, the total benefit compared with the same salary without vouchers is 729 lei.
The calculation follows the calculator's rounding to the nearest leu. Other salaries, deductions or voucher values may produce a different result.
July 2026 has at most 23 eligible days.
The July ceiling is 45 lei.
Of the 171 lei cash reduction, CASS accounts for 90 lei, and income tax for 81 lei. The resulting cash salary is 4,509 lei.
Why meal vouchers are not net salary in your bank account
Meal vouchers are an employment benefit intended for meals or food products and are used separately from the account that receives salary. Their value cannot be withdrawn as cash. Your payslip may show the benefit and its related taxes, but the meal card receives the full nominal value granted.
Since 2024, Law no. 296/2023 has included the nominal value of meal vouchers in the health insurance contribution (CASS) base. The Fiscal Code also treats them as salary income for income tax, while excluding them from the pension contribution (CAS) base. In the standard salary calculation, meal vouchers do not enter the work insurance contribution (CAM) base.
In this example, the company loads 900 lei onto the card, payroll calculates CASS and income tax, and then withholds 171 lei from cash salary. You do not pay those taxes from the card, nor does the card receive only 729 lei.
What may change the payslip result
At a lower salary, vouchers may also affect the personal deduction because their value enters the income used to select the deduction band. Dependants, eligible children and relief for employees under 26 may change the resulting income tax.
The amount also differs when the employer grants less than 45 lei or there are not 20 eligible days. Leave, a contract starting or ending during the month, and internal grant rules must be checked in payroll records. The statutory 45 lei ceiling does not resolve those situations by itself.
Completing the advanced calculator
Open the salary calculator with the example of 8,000 lei gross and 20 vouchers. Under "Advanced options", enter the voucher count and value, then keep the tax period in which you received the entitlement.
Compare "Net salary" and "Meal vouchers" separately. The first is cash after taxes; the second is the amount loaded onto the card. The methodology page explains the sources, assumptions and rounding used by the tax engine.
Sources and verification date
We checked the rules and example on 5 August 2026. The main sources are Law no. 201/2025 for the 45 lei ceiling, Law no. 165/2018 for grants based on days worked, and Law no. 296/2023 and the Fiscal Code for CASS, CAS and income-tax treatment. The 45 lei value must be checked again for entitlements after September 2026.