Summary of tax benefits for dining subsidies | Tax-exemption requirements and expense booking

「食事補助は非課税にできるって聞いたけど、どんな条件があるの？」「経費計上は福利厚生費でいいの？」——人事・経理担当者が食事補助の制度設計で最初にぶつかる疑問です。所得税法では「従業員が食事価額の半分以上を負担」「企業負担が月額7,500円以下」といった非課税要件が定められています（2026年度税制改正で、42年間据え置かれた月額3,500円から7,500円へ引き上げられました）。要件を正確に押さえれば、社員の手取りを減らさずに食事補助を実装できます。本記事では、食事補助の非課税要件、3つの実践パターン、経費計上の処理方法、そして貝印グループ × Agritureが運営するOffice Yaoya (office greengrocer)which we cover here.

• Tax-exemption requirements for meal subsidies and the latest on the FY2026 reform
• Three ways to provide meal subsidies tax-free
• How to handle the expense booking in concrete terms
• Practical examples of meal subsidies using dried vegetables

Why the tax advantages of meal subsidies are drawing attention

"We want to provide employees a meal subsidy, but what happens with taxes?"—this is one of the most common questions from general affairs and HR staff.

Get meal subsidies wrong, and they become the employee'ssubject to payroll taxation. But design the program correctly and you can provide them tax-free, while the company can also book them as welfare expenses.

What's more, the FY2026 tax reform非課税枠が大幅に拡大しました。2026年4月1日以後に支給する食事から、非課税限度額は月額7,500円です。食事補助制度の導入・見直しを検討するなら、まさに今がベストタイミングです。

Key points of the FY2026 tax reform | The first major revision in 42 years

令和8年度税制改正で、食事補助に関する大きな改正が実施されました。2026年4月1日以後に支給する食事から、新しい限度額が適用されています。

Overview of the revision

This is,the first increase in 42 yearsです。背景には2025〜2026年の物価高騰があり、政府は食事補助を「実質的な賃上げ手段」として位置づけています。

適用は2026年4月1日以後に支給する食事から。すでに施行済みで、現行の非課税限度額は月額7,500円です。

Concrete benefits for companies

Let's look at what changes with the expanded exemption cap, in concrete figures.

In other words,1人あたり月7,500円まで企業が負担しても給与課税されないわけです（従業員が食事価額の半分以上を負担していることが前提なので、この場合の食事価額は月15,000円以上になります）。置き型社食や乾燥野菜の設置費用を福利厚生費として計上しやすくなりますよ。

Three requirements for providing meal subsidies tax-free

To make meal subsidies tax-exempt, you must meet the requirements set out in the Income Tax Act directives.

Requirement 1: The employee bears at least half of the meal's value

Rather than the company covering the full amount,the employee must bear 50% or more of the meal's valuethemselves. The value is judged, as a rule, by "market price, not raw-material cost." For example, if you provide a dried-vegetable set worth 200 yen per meal, the company's share becomes tax-exempt as long as the employee bears 100 yen or more. Conversely, if the company hands out meals for free, the full amount is treated as salary and becomes taxable—so be careful.

要件2: 企業負担が月額7,500円以内

（食事の価額）－（従業員の自己負担額）が、1か月あたり7,500円以下（消費税および地方消費税を除く）であること。この要件を満たさないと、超過分だけでなく企業負担額の全額が給与として課税されます。例えば企業が月8,000円を負担した場合、500円ではなく8,000円全額が給与扱いになる仕組み。社員食堂・置き型社食・乾燥野菜サービス・食事チケットなど複数の食事補助を併用する場合は、合算で7,500円以内に収まるよう設計します。

Requirement 3: It must be an in-kind provision

As a rule,in-kind provision of mealsが必要です。現金で食事手当を支給すると、金額にかかわらず全額が給与扱いの課税対象になるので要注意。例えば「ランチ手当として月3,000円を給与に上乗せ」する形は、本人が自由に使えてしまうため食事補助とは認められません。唯一の例外が、深夜勤務者に夜食を現物で支給できないために1食650円以下の金銭を支給するケースです。

On the other hand, meals provided via meal tickets or electronic money are recognized as in-kind provision if they meet certain requirements (usable only at specific stores, usable only for meals, non-resalable, personal use only). Edenred's "Ticket Restaurant" and RELO Club's meal-subsidy electronic money are representative examples.

Learn about Office Yaoya
We have prepared materials

• Service details and vegetable lineup
• Pricing and plans
• How adoption and operation work

Sample sets are also available. Download the materials for details!

We offer sample sets so you can try Office Yaoya in small quantities. See the materials for details.

Download now

How to book meal subsidies as expenses

Here are the key points for booking them as welfare expenses.

Conditions for handling it as welfare expenses

• It must be a program all employees can use (executives only is not allowed)
• It must be stated in internal rules (welfare rules)
• Records of usage must be kept

Journal-entry example

When purchasing 30,000 yen of dried vegetables per month and employees buy at 50 yen per item:

* The employee's share (15,000 yen) is booked as miscellaneous income

Points to note

Honestly, the tax treatment of meal subsidies has many fine-grained rules, soit's safest to consult a tax accountant when first designing the program. Because judging the tax-exemption requirements in particular depends on individual circumstances, proceeding on your own judgment alone carries risk.

Practical patterns for meal subsidies using dried vegetables

Here we introduce patterns for providing meal subsidies at low cost while meeting the tax-exemption requirements.

Pattern A: Stocked dried vegetables (lowest cost, fastest to launch)

A simple approach of placing a shelf or rack in the office and displaying dried vegetables, freeze-dried soups, and health snacks. Employees buy at 50–100 yen per item, and the company books the difference from the purchase cost as welfare expenses. You can start from 10,000–30,000 yen a month (for around 50 people), and with no initial fee, no refrigerator, and no electricity cost, it's the pattern with the lowest barrier to entry.

The Kai Group × Agriture'sOffice Yaoya (office greengrocer)is a representative example of this pattern. Individually wrapped dried vegetables—100% domestic vegetables, no added sugar or additives, low-temperature dried—are designed to be added straight to cup noodles or miso soup, resolving vegetable shortfalls without changing employees' eating habits.

Pattern B: Meal-subsidy tickets (for external lunch demand)

An approach of distributing meal tickets or electronic money (Ticket Restaurant, etc.) with a monthly cap. Employees can use them at nearby partner restaurants or for delivered bento, so it suits companies with a culture of eating lunch out or those combining remote work.

Pattern C: Combined type (stocking + tickets)

An approach of keeping dried vegetables and health snacks on hand in the office while also using meal tickets for lunch. It easily accommodates diverse working styles (in-office, remote, sales roles that are often out), and has the strength of letting you write "multiple meal initiatives implemented" on a health-management application.

Combining "baseline nutrition via stocking" with "supporting individual meal choices via tickets" works for both health management and improving employee satisfaction.

Learn about Office Yaoya
We have prepared materials

• Service details and vegetable lineup
• Pricing and plans
• How adoption and operation work

Sample sets are also available. Download the materials for details!

We offer sample sets so you can try Office Yaoya in small quantities. See the materials for details.

Download now

FAQ

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