Film Accounting Glossary
Per diem
What is per diem?
Also called perdiem, or M&IE allowance.
Per diem is a daily allowance paid to crew on distant location to cover meals and incidentals without receipts.
Kept within published federal rates for the location and properly substantiated as travel away from a tax home, it is not taxable wages; above those rates, or where the assignment is not genuinely temporary, the excess becomes taxable. Union agreements set minimum per diem amounts, so the rate is often a floor rather than a choice.
Example
A crew member on distant location receives $75 a day for meals and incidentals with no receipts. Within published federal rates for that city and properly substantiated as temporary travel, it is not taxable wages. Pay $140 in a city where the rate is $75 and the excess is.
Figures are illustrative, chosen to show the mechanics rather than to quote market rates.
Where you'll see it
Set in the deal memo, with union agreements often setting a minimum, so the rate is a floor rather than a free choice.
Common mistake
Paying above published rates without considering the tax consequence. The excess becomes taxable wages, which nobody intended and nobody budgeted.
Related questions
- Is per diem taxable?
- Not when it is within published federal rates for the location and the assignment is genuinely temporary travel away from a tax home. Amounts above that are.
- Who sets the per diem rate on a production?
- The production, but union agreements commonly set a minimum, so the negotiated rate is often a floor rather than a free choice.