In any business that involves travel, whether you run a small team, manage a fleet, or are self-employed, understanding business mileage is essential. Knowing what counts as business mileage, how to calculate it accurately, and how to claim it properly can save time, money, and hassle. In this guide, we break down everything you need to know about business mileage for 2026.
What counts as business mileage?
Business mileage refers to the distance driven for business-related activities, rather than personal use.
Common examples of business mileage include:
Travelling from your usual place of work to a client’s site (when this journey is not part of your regular commute).
Driving between different sites for work - for example, between offices, warehouses, or to meet customers.
Any journey where you carry out business duties, such as delivering goods, visiting clients, attending meetings, or running errands for business.
For self-employed individuals, trips are necessary for carrying out contracts or servicing clients.
It is important to draw a clear distinction between commuting mileage (travelling from home to a permanent workplace) and business mileage. Commuting mileage typically does not qualify for mileage claims, unless there’s no fixed workplace, or it is specifically mentioned in an employee's contract.
Having a clear mileage log or record of trips, dates, distances, destinations and purpose helps support any claim. Many businesses pair this with fuel cards, which can also help track fuel expenses and mileage, ensuring claims remain transparent and auditable.
If you’re considering this, read more about how fuel cards work for employees and how they integrate with mileage tracking.
How much can be claimed as business mileage?
What you can claim depends on a variety of factors - vehicle type, whether you're an employee or self-employed, company policy, and local tax regulations.
Broadly, there are two situations:
1. Employer reimbursement (employees or contractors):
Many companies reimburse staff per mile driven on business trips. Typical reimbursement rates cover fuel, maintenance, wear and tear, and sometimes insurance, effectively mimicking the real cost of using your own vehicle for work. The rate per mile depends on company policy.
2. Mileage claims for self-employed individuals:
If you run your own business and use a personal or business vehicle, you can often claim mileage as a business expense. This reduces taxable profits. The amount you can claim depends on the mileage rate permitted by tax authorities (or your own record of actual costs, if that’s allowed), and the distance travelled for business.
The benefit of mileage claims for self-employed professionals is that you don’t need to track every fuel receipt or maintenance cost; a standard mileage rate simplifies bookkeeping.
Whether for reimbursement or tax deduction, accurate logs are essential. Unverified or poorly documented mileage can raise red flags.
For organisations running fleets, combining mileage tracking with fuel-card usage helps, which is why many businesses turn to fuel cards for greater transparency and easier tracking.
How to claim business mileage
Here’s a clear, step-by-step approach to claiming business mileage:
1. Keep a detailed mileage log
Your log should include: date of journey, start and end addresses, mileage covered, purpose of journey, driver name (if different from vehicle owner), and vehicle registration.
Digital mileage-tracking tools or fleet-management software can simplify this, and some fuel cards even log journeys automatically when used. For more on fleet-specific concerns, see our article on grey fleet management.
2. Calculate claimable mileage
Use your logged data to calculate total business miles. For employees reimbursed by employers, apply the company’s “per mile” rate. For self-employed, check the allowable rate under tax regulations (or use actual costs if permitted).
3. Submit your claim or record in accounts
For employees/contractors: Use the company’s mileage-claim form or digital portal.
For self-employed: Record miles in your accounting spreadsheets or software as business expenses.
Ensure that claims are submitted promptly and supported by your log.
If you use a fuel card, collate your card statements, linking fuel purchases with mileage claims. Fuel cards help prevent misuse and make auditing easier, reducing the risk of fraud. For more, see our guide on fuel cards and tax and why it matters to watch out for fuel card fraud.
Why fuel cards matter when claiming mileage
Using fuel cards offers several advantages when claiming mileage:
Automated record-keeping: Fuel transactions are logged electronically, useful for both mileage and expense verification.
Consistency: All drivers/fleet users follow the same process, reducing the risk of errors or inconsistencies.
Ease for audits: Fuel-card logs simplify auditing and compliance, especially for larger fleets or companies under scrutiny for expense claims.
Cost control: Businesses can monitor expenditure, detect unusual usage patterns, and manage fuel budgets better.
By integrating fuel cards into mileage claims, businesses can streamline operations, reduce administrative burden, and improve transparency.
Our key takeaways on business mileage
Business mileage - journeys for work-related tasks beyond regular commuting can be claimed or reimbursed, saving costs for both individuals and businesses.
Whether you’re an employee or self-employed, accurate mileage logs are essential.
Fuel cards significantly simplify mileage claims, record-keeping and auditing.
Organisations that manage fleets should consider implementing fuel-card usage alongside a clear mileage claim policy.
Understanding business mileage is not just about saving money. It’s about creating reliable, transparent systems that support compliance, efficiency and cost control.
If you liked this guide, check out our detailed explanation of how fuel cards work for employees or learn more about fleet management and mileage claims.
