Foreign-currency expenses and overseas travel: rates, per diem and FX differences

An overseas trip produces three things that regularly go wrong: the rate used for conversion, the per diem owed by day and country, and the FX difference on the settled advance. 4expenses keeps the original currency amount alongside its lei equivalent and the rate applied, on every line.

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What is computed automatically on an overseas trip

The rate tied to the document date

Conversion uses the National Bank rate of the last banking day before the operation, per Romanian accounting rules, not the rate on the day the report is settled. The applied rate stays saved on the line so it can be checked later.

The foreign amount stays visible

The line keeps both the amount in the currency actually paid and its lei equivalent. The employee recognises the figure on the receipt, and accounting gets the equivalent it needs.

Per diem by day and by country

A travel order is split into segments and per diem is computed per country crossed, over the actual number of days — not as a flat amount for the whole trip.

The taxable part of per diem, computed correctly

The non-taxable ceiling is 2.5 times the level set for public institutions, but no more than 3 base salaries for the position held — a cap measured against the days of delegation rather than the month (art. 76(2)(k) of the Romanian Tax Code). Anything above it is treated as salary income.

The advance and the settlement in one currency

An advance keeps the currency and the method it was granted in, and the balance to be returned to or paid to the employee is visible on the settlement alongside the justified amounts.

Foreign-currency cards reconciled with receipts

Transactions imported from the company card are matched against uploaded receipts, including when the bank already converted the amount — without recording the same payment twice.

The practical rule is that every foreign-currency expense should carry three facts: the original amount, the rate used and the document date the rate derives from. With those, a settlement is verified in minutes; without them, a week-long trip becomes a reconstruction from card statements.

Frequently asked questions about foreign-currency expenses

What is the non-taxable ceiling for Romanian domestic per diem?−

It is 2.5 times the per-diem level set for public-institution staff — 23 lei per day under HG 714/2018 as updated by Order 1235/2023, so 57.5 lei per day. A second cap then applies: 3 base salaries for the position held, divided by the working days in the month and multiplied by the days of delegation (art. 76(2)(k)(i)). Note that the 33% monthly ceiling does NOT apply to delegation per diem — it targets mobility-clause benefits other than those under letter k).

Which rate applies to an expense in euro?+

How is an advance granted in foreign currency tracked?+

The tax and legal information on this page was verified on 30 July 2026 and is provided for information only — it is not tax advice. Legislation changes and its application depends on your company's specific situation: confirm with your accountant or adviser before acting on it.

Close an overseas trip without redoing the maths in a spreadsheet

Rate from the document date, per diem by country and day, FX differences computed on the settlement.