Tips to the waiter are included in taxes. How to pay tips with a bank card? Experience of the USA and Russia

The quality of education is always visible in the manner of communication with the service staff. You must be able to respect the work of others and thank them in a timely manner for the help provided. Tipping is a great way to say a sincere “thank you” by paying a non-burdensome amount, whatever the waiter, receptionist or gas station attendant really deserves.

What is a tip and how long do they exist?

The topic of tipping is gradually becoming more and more popular. A little money or a gift shows the maid, bartender, taxi driver that his work is meaningful and encourages him to develop in his field. Tipping will help cheer up the waiter. Voluntarily rewarding excellent work means providing better service. There are several versions of the origin of tips:

18th century. In teahouses popular with the aristocracy, they placed special boxes with the inscription “T.I.P.S”, where they put coins, no matter how much, for the staff. The meaning of the abbreviation is literally “to speed up service” or “To Insure Prompt Servise”. Afterwards, the capital letters and periods were removed, making the inscription a general designation for tips in English.
In the 16th century, water was collected from wells. Some strong townspeople voluntarily helped the others lift the heavy bucket from there and bring it home. For this they were thanked with a small payment called trinkgeld or “drinking money.”
In the 18th century, it was customary to reward restaurant hawkers so that they would work faster and do a great job. The additional charge corresponded to the price of the cheapest tea.

Tipping today

According to etiquette, now you need to leave a tip in an amount equal to 10% of the check size. This money is given voluntarily as a reward to a liked employee in the service sector. Remuneration contributes to future improvements in service quality.

Rules of good manners allow leaving a small gift instead of money. Non-monetary rewards are also common. The concept of a tip is interpreted quite broadly. The administrator behind the counter will be pleased to receive a souvenir from a distant country from a grateful client, and the absence of a cash payment will prevent the employee from being suspected of a bribe or self-interest.

According to statistics, only half of people consider paying a tip obligatory, the rest are either unfamiliar with this concept or do not know how to do it.

Do I need to pay a tip at all?

Rewarding for service according to etiquette is not at all an obligation. A situation where you tip a bartender whose efficiency leaves much to be desired is undesirable. Expressing gratitude is an act of good will; you don’t need to follow everything too literally.

However, encouragement has its own benefits. Giving a tip of 50-200 rubles to the seller you like is not burdensome, but will improve further service and the attitude of the staff.

If the process of providing a service required additional actions from the employee (the taxi driver had to stop at an ATM, the receptionist had to carry too fragile or heavy luggage), it is highly recommended to pay a little more than the usual fee. A little tip to the waiter who serves the big man or to the maid who cleans up the mess created by the client will compensate for the wasted effort.

Who is supposed to tip?

There are areas and positions where accepting tips is considered common. Employees in some industries even consider not receiving additional payment as a sign of customer dissatisfaction. Cafes and expensive hotels are traditionally places where it is recommended to leave a small amount for the staff. To whom is it customary to pay tips:

It is customary for taxi drivers to leave a percentage of the cost of the trip or a small amount. How much to pay is determined by the duration and complexity of the route.
Waiters, bartenders of a cafe or restaurant. Sometimes the reward is passed on to the chef. Money to the waiter is sometimes simply included in the bill; it is recommended to clarify this point in advance.
Hairdressers, manicurists, cosmetologists.
Maid, hotel receptionist.
Refuelers.
Pizza delivery people, couriers, delivery boys.
Doorman
Concierges and watchmen.
Guides and tour guides.
To sellers.
Wardrobe keepers.
Train conductor when paying for additional services or at the final station.
Animators.
Car service workers.

People whose profession requires decent wages are not given tips, but they are allowed to express gratitude with small gifts.

Do not receive tips:

Flight attendants;
Doctors;
Officials and officials (there is a risk of being punished for a bribe);
Psychoanalyst;
Translator;
Trainer.

How to tip appropriately

It is customary to make tips only in cash. In order not to create an awkward situation, it is recommended to carry small money with you, calculating in advance how many establishments you will have to visit. It’s easy to give a few bills when paying by card or put them in an envelope with a check when leaving the establishment.

According to etiquette, it is customary to express gratitude after a service has been rendered. The receptionist or doorman will not refuse a tip when letting you into the establishment or near the door of your room.

How much to tip

The size of the tip depends on the visitor’s wishes, but there is a threshold below which you should not go. This is about 5-20% percent of the bill or 50-100 rubles. A smaller amount is more like a handout and may offend. How much to tip in a restaurant, beauty salon, or car service determines the quality of the service. A very satisfied client with a delicious meal or a successful haircut can leave a decent amount to the hairdresser or waiter.

How to give tea correctly

A few simple rules will help you thank an employee with dignity without offending him:

You should not express embarrassment when giving a tip; it is better to smile sincerely and say out loud: “Thank you.”
You cannot pay money as a favor or hint at any additional services.
There is no need to rummage through your wallet for too long in search of change or, on the contrary, act in a hurry.
A handful of coins poured into the hand of a receptionist or waiter can offend. It is unacceptable to leave a small thing that will simply disturb the employee later.
Arrogantly declaring that there is no need for change is not recommended. The client, trying to rise at the expense of the employee, insults him instead of thanking him.

Tipping abroad

Countries in Europe, Asia and the New World have very different tipping cultures.

Tipping is required in all areas of service. Not leaving money to a taxi driver or waiter is considered bad manners.
, a country where tipping is accepted at the state level. The additional fee is usually 15%. Sometimes it is immediately included in the bill.
In New Zealand, Australia, Iceland, and other countries, it is not customary to leave a tip, although this is allowed in tourist areas.
Tipping may offend the owner of the establishment. It is believed that hospitality should be free of charge.
In countries where the tourism industry is developed (Turkey, Egypt, Tunisia), staff consider it obligatory to receive cash from guests.

Tipping culture in Russia

The topic of tipping in the post-Soviet space began to be discussed relatively recently. Before the collapse of the USSR, it was believed that any person was paid exactly as much as the amount of work he puts into the common cause. Instead of tips, scarce gifts were distributed to doctors, teachers, and trade workers. Gradually the attitude began to change. People began to understand the real position of service personnel.

In Russia, the average tip now is 100 rubles or 10% of the check amount. Generous clients pay much more. For public establishments, tipping has become commonplace.

Tips as the main income

In the case when an establishment pays unreasonably little, relying on tips, the staff has to live only on the money from serving guests. In some hotels or restaurants, the waiter or receptionist receives practically nothing. His salary directly depends on his mood and how much money the client left. This state of affairs is common in the United States and is gradually becoming commonplace in Russia. In these cases, not giving a tip means leaving the employee without a salary.

conclusions

Tipping is an expression of gratitude. How much to pay depends on the quality of service and mood, but you shouldn’t leave too little amount. Additional payment for the service is voluntary, but it is worth taking into account the official fee of the employee and financially rewarding him for his diligence.

Surprises happen in life, sometimes unpleasant ones. These include, for example, a restaurant bill with a separate line at the bottom - “Service fee” or “Service fee”. And immediately there is a sediment in your soul - you are presented with a fact, depriving you of the opportunity to choose. What to do in such a case? Is it possible and necessary to defend your rights? And are such tips included in the bill legal? Legal education is conducted by the leading Internet search portal.

What does the law say about included tips?

Let us immediately make a reservation that we are talking about Russian laws and rules that are valid only on the territory of the Russian Federation and apply to public catering establishments operating in Russia.

Important: According to Russian rules of public catering, the inclusion of tips in the bill, without prior notification, is a violation of consumer rights (clause 1, Article 16 of the Federal Law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”) and the Civil Code of the Russian Federation.

Thus, if a client of a cafe/restaurant first learned about such a service fee from the establishment from the payment invoice, that is, in fact, at the end of the meal, he has every right to be indignant and refuse to pay this fee.

But! If the establishment in a prominent place - at the entrance, in the menu, at the very beginning and in large letters - warned its client that it would charge a service fee in such and such an amount, then the client is considered notified and is not deprived of the right to choose: accept such conditions or refuse and leave the establishment. In this case, everything looks legal in the eyes of the law.

Why does a restaurant include tips in the bill?

As the restaurateurs themselves explain, the practice of including tips in the bill came from complaints from waiters that when serving large, group orders, they received “humiliating” tips. What exactly the definition of “humiliating tips” implies is not specified. But it's probably a tip of less than 10 percent of the total bill.

And the administration of the establishment found a way out - it began to include tips in the bill, as a separate line, with a fixed percentage.

This practice was quickly picked up by other restaurants, because it corresponds to the logic of such establishments, which benefit from additional payments - for delivery, drinking water, etc.

In addition, large orders actually result in meager tips and additional workload for the service staff. They constantly distract the waiters' attention, pulling it away from individual tables. As a result, the waiter loses the reward from small orders that he would have received if he had not been constantly distracted by a large group of guests.

On a note: Typically a large group of guests in a restaurant is considered to be a group of 8 or more people. And the normal tip is 10 or 15% of the order amount.

Pros and cons of included tips

The advantages include:

guaranteed receipt of tips by the restaurant service department. The waiters are calm, because they have “insurance” - tips included in the bill;
receipt by the establishment of an additional payment.

But! In this case, the establishment runs a high risk of running into an administrative fine (Article 14.5 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation). And all because the cost of service is already included in the cost of the dish when the menu is drawn up, and an additional fee - in the form of tips included in the bill - if it does not go to the establishment’s cash desk, is, in fact, unaccounted revenue.

The disadvantages are seen as follows:

the emergence of conflict situations with clients. Nobody likes being presented with a fact, depriving him of the opportunity to make an independent decision. And some visitors to the establishment, placed in such a situation, express displeasure and refuse to pay, calling the hall manager to a showdown;
loss of some clients who do not agree with such an additional fee. Regular customers who are familiar with the order of things and accept the rules of the game are unlikely to betray their establishment. But new visitors, with a high degree of probability, will prefer a cafe/restaurant without additional tips;
lack of motivation among staff. Why try so hard if there will be a tip if it's already added to the bill? This is the same as expecting the same return from a child in studies with incentive pocket payments and without them. There are, of course, conscientious schoolchildren who derive great joy from the taste of the granite of science. But no one has canceled the role of stimulants, and tips are one of them.

Important: Experts also note the psychological aspect of the situation with tips included in the bill. This state of affairs deprives the client of the opportunity to feel like a master of the situation, a generous appraiser. In fact, he no longer evaluates anything - no one is interested in his opinion on the quality of service. Good service or bad, pay the percentage fixed by the administration of the establishment and that’s it!

Not very nice! Therefore, it is not surprising that, with unsatisfactory service, the likelihood of conflict situations when paying a bill with a tip included for service increases significantly.

Summary from 4Banket: I want to ask: Is it worth it? Perhaps it would be more far-sighted on the part of the administration of the establishment to allow the client to show generous generosity, leaving him the right to choose and keeping his service staff in constant good shape.

Surprises happen in life, sometimes unpleasant ones. These include, for example, a restaurant bill with a separate line at the bottom - “Service fee” or “Service fee”. And immediately there is a sediment in your soul - you are presented with a fact, depriving you of the opportunity to choose. What to do in such a case? Is it possible and necessary to defend your rights? And are such tips included in the bill legal? Legal educational program is conducted by the leading Internet search portal www.4banket.ru.

What does the law say about included tips?

But! If the establishment in a visible place - at the entrance, in the menu, at the very beginning and in large letters - warned its client that it would charge a service fee in such and such an amount, then the client is considered notified and is not deprived of the right to choose: accept such conditions or refuse and leave the establishment. In this case, everything looks legal in the eyes of the law.

Why does a restaurant include tips in the bill?

And the administration of the establishment found a way out - it began to include tips in the bill, as a separate line, with a fixed percentage.

This practice was quickly picked up by other restaurants, because it corresponds to the logic of such establishments, which benefit from additional payments - for delivery, drinking water, etc.

On a note: Typically a large group of guests in a restaurant is considered to be a group of 8 or more people. And the normal tip is 10 or 15% of the order amount.

Pros and cons of included tips

The advantages include:

guaranteed receipt of tips by the restaurant service department. The waiters are calm, because they have “insurance” - tips included in the bill;
receipt by the establishment of an additional payment.

But! In this case, the establishment runs a high risk of running into an administrative fine (Article 14.5 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation). And all because the cost of service is already included in the cost of the dish when the menu is drawn up, and the additional fee - in the form of tips included in the bill - if it does not go to the establishment’s cash desk, is, in fact, unaccounted revenue.

The disadvantages are seen as follows:

the emergence of conflict situations with clients. Nobody likes being presented with a fact, depriving him of the opportunity to make an independent decision. And some visitors to the establishment, placed in such a situation, express displeasure and refuse to pay, calling the hall manager to a showdown;
loss of some clients who do not agree with such an additional fee. Regular customers who are familiar with the order of things and accept the rules of the game are unlikely to betray their establishment. But new visitors, with a high degree of probability, will prefer a cafe/restaurant without additional tips;
lack of motivation among staff. Why try so hard if there will be a tip if it's already added to the bill? This is the same as expecting the same return from a child in studies with incentive pocket payments and without them. There are, of course, conscientious schoolchildren who derive great joy from the taste of the granite of science. But no one has canceled the role of stimulants, and tips are one of them.

Not very nice! Therefore, it is not surprising that, with unsatisfactory service, the likelihood of conflict situations when paying a bill with a tip included for service increases significantly.

To other articles:

Vote and receive a gift!
10 rules of a good waiter
What are tips for a waiter and how to earn them?

A tip is the client’s gratitude to the service staff, expressed financially.

In many countries, tip is left not only in cafes and restaurants, but also in taxis, hotels, and beauty salons. In Russia, drivers and delivery men are often given change, permanent craftsmen and hairdressers are given gifts on holidays, and small bills, for example 100 rubles, are left to maids and gas station attendants. Basically, the question of tips arises when it comes to cafes and restaurants: should you tip and how much?

Thanking the waiter financially is not just a sign of good manners. Tips often make up a significant portion of his earnings.

Employees of establishments may officially receive a very small salary, and they need tips to pay for housing and buy food. However, it is important not to fall into a moral trap in this matter: you do not have to just give money to a person for doing his job. But if he does it well, why not thank her. It’s a small thing for you, it’s nice for him.

Sometimes money received from customers over and above bills is added up and divided among waiters and other service personnel who do not interact with customers.

It happens that a service fee is included in the bill. It is indicated on a separate line and is easy to find on the receipt. In this case, there is no need to leave additional money. Moreover, if you do not like the service, you can ask to deduct the excess from the check. Remuneration to the waiter is the right, not the responsibility of the client, and it is illegal to impose it Is it legal to include a “tip” on the order bill?.

How much to tip

There are no laws that regulate how much you should tip. The amount of gratitude is determined by traditions. Thus, in Russia it is customary to leave approximately 10% of the bill in cafes and restaurants. But that doesn't mean the waiter will be upset if you give him more.

10% is a very convenient amount to calculate: no calculators, no sheet of paper and pen are needed. Just take the number from the check without any decimal places and remove the last digit from it. For example, you ate for 4,500 rubles. Remove zero and get 450 rubles in tips. Then you went to a fashion store and left 1,734 rubles there. The tip will be 173 rubles, but the amount is usually rounded up - more often than not.

How to tip

There are only two ways to tip.

1. Cash

Regardless of how you pay - by card or cash, it is appropriate to put the tip in the folder with the bill after you have paid it. Leave the bills and leave with a clear conscience.

You can also, if you pay in cash, put the amount including the tip in the folder and warn the waiter that you don’t need change.

In some establishments without waiters, tip jars are located at the cash register. If you like the cafe, don’t forget to at least sometimes thank the employees.

2. By bank card

You shouldn’t particularly rely on this method: cafes and restaurants offer it extremely rarely. But sometimes you can ask to be charged not only for lunch, but also a certain amount for tip. You call it a number or a percentage.

How to tip abroad

USA

In the USA, waiters can work without any salary at all, but only for tips, so it is customary to leave 15% of the bill, and this is the minimum value.

Gratitude will be expected not only in cafes and restaurants. For example, a bartender at a nightclub may simply stop taking orders if you pay exactly according to the price list. It is customary to leave tips in taxis, at gas stations, and generally wherever it may be appropriate.

Sweden

The tradition of tipping is not very common here. If the service staff is thanked, it is extremely modest - with an amount of about 5% of the bill.

Italy

In Italian restaurants, there is a coperto - a commission for a seat, as well as a servizio - a commission for service. Information about this should be written on each menu page. As a result, your bill will be several euros higher, and you don’t have to leave a tip.

Serbia

When you pay the waiter, you decide how much change to give back to you. You can also simply leave a tip on the table. The standard 10% will be enough.

France

The usual tip here is 10-15% of the check, but according to local law, it must be included in the bill.

Japan

Tipping is not accepted here; it is treated as... If the waiter takes money, it is only because he has given up hope of explaining to you that it is inappropriate.

Thailand

Absolutely everyone is expected to tip from you, and it can be absolutely any amount.

Mexico

The standard here is 15%.

Germany

The waiter himself may offer you to round up the bill, for example, from 37 to 40 euros.

Vietnam

Tipping is not part of the culture and can often be returned to you. But in general, the Vietnamese are now more favorable towards this type of gratitude.

Do you leave tips? If yes, how much?

Usually in restaurants and cafes it is customary to leave tips, although by law no one requires you to give them. You can leave a small amount as a thank you for good service. This amount may vary in different countries. Leaving a tip is a sign of good manners, because this is how you thank the waiter for good service.

Steps

Decide on the amount

It is customary to leave 15 percent of the bill as a tip. The basic level of tips left at a restaurant is a minimum of 15 percent of the total bill. However, this amount is considered minimal. If you leave less than this amount, you will most likely offend the waiter.

To calculate the tip amount, you should use simple mathematical rules. Some people try to figure out how much 15 percent of the bill would be. You can use mathematical equations to determine how much to tip.

Check to see if tips are included in the bill. Some restaurants include tips in advance on the bill. In this case, you should not leave an additional tip.

Typically, tips range from 15 to 18 percent if they are automatically added to the bill. In some restaurants, tips are included in the bill when the order is placed for a large group of people. In this case, the menu will indicate: “tip included.”
This is done because even if one or two people do not want to leave a tip, it is unlikely that the waiter will be asked to change the final amount.
Serving large groups of visitors takes longer and requires more work. Therefore, you need to find out in advance (or check the information on the website) whether tips are included in the bill.

Tipping rules

Leave tips for other restaurant employees as well. If you were not only served by your waiter (waitress), it is usually advised to tip other employees as well.
- For example, if you were served by a sommelier, it is customary to leave him 15% of the cost of a bottle of wine.
- You can leave the service staff 100 rubles or 200 rubles for the parking space you occupied during lunch. You may want to tip less if the food is served buffet style or if you are only served drinks. But you still need to leave a 10-15% tip.
- Some restaurants have cleaners; you can tip them 50 rubles. You might even want to tip the head waiter or cook. When you buy something at the counter, such as your morning coffee, you don't have to leave a tip.
Use a special application. Download the app to your smartphone, which will automatically calculate the tip based on the total bill amount that you need to enter.

Understand why people tip. Many waiters (and other service personnel) live off tips they leave. The fact that they receive tips is what drives their low hourly wages in the first place.

If the service was bad, you can leave a very small tip. There's nothing wrong with leaving a small tip if your service was truly terrible. Don't feel obligated to leave a full tip.

If the service was great, tell your waiter so. You will definitely cheer him up if you tell him that his service is not just excellent, but impeccable! Why not tell him about it?
- Write a short note and include it with your bill when you pay, explaining why you were so pleased with the service.
- It's even better to call the manager and praise the waiter's work.
- Always treat the waiter politely and friendly. The work of the service staff is quite stressful, especially if customers allow themselves to communicate impolitely with the staff!

Tipping in other countries

Make sure tips are accepted. In most establishments, tips are not only accepted, but encouraged because they are part of the staff's earnings. But in some other countries, tipping may be considered an offensive or even unacceptable gesture!
Tipping with caution in Europe. Europeans have a different attitude towards tipping than Russians. If in Russia it is customary to leave a tip, then in Europe, most often, they are not expected.
- Start by looking at the restaurant's menu to see if gratuities are included in the bill. If gratuity is not included, you can leave a 5-10% tip. In some countries it would be strange to leave more.
- The difference is that service personnel in Europe are often paid better than in Russia. This means that they don’t need tips as much, so Europeans view tips as a pleasant and unexpected bonus.
- It's a good idea to give your tip to the waiter personally rather than leaving it on the table. You may notice an additional 12.5% tip on some menus in London.
Most Asian countries do not require tipping. In some Asian countries they are considered a sign of disrespect. So do some research ahead of time about local tipping traditions to make sure your tip won't be taken as an insult.
- Tipping is not common in China, although you can leave a tip at a hotel or restaurant that caters to foreigners.
- In Japan, the owner may be offended by your tip - he may take it as a sign that he does not pay his staff well enough.
- However, in some Asian countries, tipping is quite normal. For example, in Thailand it is pleasant to leave about 50 rubles (1 dollar) for the waiter's service.

Tips are also included with your order, so don't forget to leave them!
Tip jars are becoming increasingly popular among various cafes and small shops selling coffee, pastries and ice cream. The staff at these establishments spend very little time with each guest, but the wages in these establishments are usually low. A small tip is, of course, greatly appreciated.

Warnings

The government levies taxes on waiters, bartenders and baristas based on the fact that part of their income comes from guests' tips. If you don't tip waiters or service staff at all, you're leaving them partially without income.