One way of saving big money on your tax bill is by claiming back travel expenses, decidedly if you use your vehicle. But to do that, HMRC requires you to keep an accurate log of all your business journeys.
What does HMRC require when tracking miles?
You aren’t allowed to estimate your mileage or to make a record weeks or months later (it’s unlikely to be accurate, for one thing). You should be recording your trips the same day, if possible, or every week at least.
What should you include in your HMRC mileage form?
- Date of the journey
- Purpose (business or personal)
- Starting and ending points
- Total miles travelled
- The type of vehicle you used
A straightforward way to record your mileage manually for tax purposes is to use an Excel spreadsheet template. Our easy-to-use mileage log, which is also free to download, lets you quickly calculate the tax-deductible amount for each journey and add up the total once complete. A printable mileage log like this also enables you to run off hard copies for your records.
How to use your free mileage log sheet for taxes
Just make a note of all your miles, business or not, and when you’re on a computer, complete the spreadsheet as follows:
- Put ‘business’ in the purpose column if it’s a business journey
- In the next column, put the details for the trip, for example, "visiting client x" or "picking up office supplies"
- Enter the destination
- Fill in the total miles for the trip
Which HMRC mileage rates apply to which vehicles?
Make sure you also use the correct field for the vehicle you use. Mainly, because there are different figures for cars and goods vehicles, motorbikes and bicycles, as shown below. If it’s business mileage, the template will automatically calculate your potential deduction in each case.[table id=30 /]For a full list of mileage and fuel rates and allowances, refer to the HMRC website.
Alternatively, try automatic mileage logging with MileIQ
Useful as it is, mileage tracker spreadsheet like this has limitations too.For one, thing, it can get tiring to keep having to record all your drives, then transfer them to the spreadsheet. For another, it’s limited in what it can do.The good news is that our mileage tracker app is much easier – and far more powerful as well.It’s easy to use, it’s accurate, and everything is right at your fingertips.
With MileIQ, you’re not tracking miles yourself. It’s all done for you. Just download and launch it, and the app takes care of the rest. That includes working out the value of each journey.By swiping left or right, you can classify each drive as a business journey or not. You can also personalise it to suit the needs of your business.
MileIQ safely stores everything in the cloud, so it can never get lost. As HMRC tax rules state you have to keep business data for at least five years, that’s good news.
To date, MileIQ has logged around 30 billion miles. It’s helped business users save a lot of time and even more money.So why not try it for yourself now?
