The rules have changed: what can you now buy with your meal vouchers?

Restaurant coupons provided by your employer can now be used to pay for all of your food purchases. The maximum daily limit for “restaurant tickets” or other “restaurant passes” will also soon rise to 25 euros.

• How much can you pay with food stamps?

After having climbed to 38 euros at the end of the first confinement, the daily ceiling for the use of food vouchers was reduced to 19 euros last June, its level prior to the health crisis. But soon you should earn a few extra euros thanks to a new increase: from October 1 at the latest (the exact date is not yet known), it will be possible to pay 25 euros a day with your “rest bills” or your “Vouchers of Lunch”.

•Where and when can they be used?

Meal vouchers can be used to pay all or part of the bill when eating in a restaurant, but also to buy lunch in stores such as bakeries, caterers, deli or greengrocers; Beware, restaurants and merchants are not required to accept them. This means of payment can also be used in supermarkets to buy food or prepare meals.

However, the use of “restaurant tickets” is limited to working days of the week, that is, excluding weekends and holidays, unless you work on those days. In addition, it is also limited to the department in which you work and neighboring departments, unless you are traveling on business.

• What can you buy in supermarkets?

Until now it was not possible to buy everything with your “restaurant tickets” when shopping in a supermarket: you could only pay for purchases of food products for direct consumption (salads, fruits, etc.), sandwiches, dairy products or prepared dishes – each brand establishes its own list of eligible products.

As of August 18, 2022, it is now possible to use them to pay for all your food purchases. This measure, voted within the framework of the “purchasing power” law, is valid until December 31, 2023, the date on which the list of products will be restricted again.

• What are restaurateurs afraid of?

The relaxation of the rules in supermarkets displeases the actors of the restoration. Several organizers advocate that the use of “rest tickets” be limited to the payment of the employee’s lunch and not become an ordinary means of payment, for fear of losing customers during the lunch break to the benefit of mass distribution and kitchen homemade.