HMRC Business Mileage Calculator
Work out the approved amount for business miles driven in your own vehicle, using HMRC's published mileage rates for 2026/27.
Using 2026/27 UK tax rates
Your own vehicle, not a company car.
Qualifying business travel only — not commuting.
Advanced options
Business miles where a colleague travelled with you.
Paid at 5p per passenger per business mile.
Approved mileage amount
£4,400.00
- First 10,000 business miles — 8,000 mi at 55p
- £4,400.00
- Total approved amount
- £4,400.00
Based on published 2026/27 rates, last checked 2026-09-07.
What counts as a business mile?
Travel to a temporary workplace, to visit customers or suppliers, or between workplaces counts. Travel between home and a permanent workplace does not, and neither does the private part of a mixed journey.
What this means
The approved amount is what can be paid to you, or claimed by you, without an Income Tax charge. For a car or van the rate drops from 55p to 25p once you pass 10,000 business miles in the tax year, so your average rate per mile falls as your mileage rises.
Only business travel counts. Ordinary commuting between home and a permanent workplace is not business travel, and private journeys never count.
Quick answers
- What is the 2026/27 mileage rate for a car or van?
- 55p per mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year, then 25p per mile after that.
- What is the motorcycle mileage rate?
- 24p per mile for all business miles, with no drop after 10,000 miles.
- What is the bicycle mileage rate?
- 20p per mile for all business miles.
- Can I claim more if I carry a work colleague?
- Yes, if you drive a car or van. An employer can pay an extra 5p per mile for each qualifying passenger, on top of the driver's own rate.
- Do these rates apply to a company car?
- No. Approved mileage rates are for your own vehicle. A company car uses HMRC's advisory fuel rates instead.
Keep a mileage record as you go
A claim is only as good as its record: date, journey, purpose and miles for every business trip, kept through the year rather than reconstructed at the end of it.
If your employer reimburses less than the approved rate, the shortfall may be worth claiming as Mileage Allowance Relief.
You may also find useful
- Mileage Allowance Relief CalculatorTax relief you can claim when your employer pays less than the approved rate.
- Fuel Cost Per Mile CalculatorWhat fuel actually costs you per mile from your MPG and pump price.
- Employee Cost & Employer NI CalculatorThe full annual cost of hiring, including employer National Insurance and pension.
How we calculated it
Business miles are split across the published bands for your vehicle type, each band is multiplied by its rate, and the results are added together. Passenger payments, where they apply, are calculated separately as miles × passengers × 5p.
Assumptions
- All the miles entered are qualifying business miles in one tax year.
- The 10,000-mile threshold applies across the whole tax year, not per journey.
- Passenger payments apply only to employees and directors in cars and vans.
- The result is the approved amount, not the tax you will pay or save.
How this calculator works
Employees and directors: Approved Mileage Allowance Payments
If you use your own vehicle for work, your employer can pay you up to the approved rate tax-free. Payments above the approved rate are taxable; payments below it may entitle you to Mileage Allowance Relief.
| Vehicle | Band | Rate per mile |
|---|---|---|
| Car or van | First 10,000 business miles | 55p |
| Car or van | Business miles above 10,000 | 25p |
| Motorcycle | All business miles | 24p |
| Bicycle | All business miles | 20p |
| Car or van | Each qualifying passenger, per business mile | 5p |
Self-employed: simplified expenses
If you are self-employed you can instead use flat-rate simplified expenses for vehicle mileage, rather than claiming a share of actual running costs. Once you use simplified expenses for a vehicle you must keep using it for that vehicle.
| Vehicle | Band | Rate per mile |
|---|---|---|
| Car or goods vehicle | First 10,000 business miles | 55p |
| Car or goods vehicle | Business miles above 10,000 | 25p |
| Motorcycle | All business miles | 24p |
These rates are for your own vehicle. Company cars use HMRC's advisory fuel rates instead, which are a different thing entirely. If you just want to know what fuel costs per mile rather than what you can claim, try the fuel cost per mile calculator.
Worked examples
5,000 business miles in a car or van
All 5,000 miles fall inside the first band, so the whole amount is paid at 55p: 5,000 × 55p = £2,750. No miles reach the lower 25p rate this year.
10,000 business miles in a car or van
This exactly fills the first band: 10,000 × 55p = £5,500. The 25p rate has not started to apply yet — it only bites on the 10,001st mile.
12,000 business miles in a car or van
The first 10,000 miles are paid at 55p (£5,500) and the remaining 2,000 at 25p (£500), giving an approved amount of £6,000 for the year — an average of 50p a mile overall.
If a colleague travelled along for 1,000 of those business miles, a further £50 in passenger payments could also be paid tax-free (1,000 × 1 × 5p).
Key terms explained
- Approved Mileage Allowance Payments (AMAP)
- The HMRC scheme setting how much an employer can pay an employee or director tax-free for business travel in their own vehicle, based on published pence-per-mile rates.
- Qualifying business mile
- A mile of travel for work purposes other than ordinary commuting — for example to a client, a temporary workplace, or between two workplaces on the same day.
- Simplified expenses
- A flat-rate method self-employed people can use to claim vehicle costs based on mileage, instead of working out a business proportion of actual running costs.
Common mistakes
Using own-vehicle mileage rates for a company car
The 55p/25p rates only apply when you use your own car, van, motorcycle or bicycle. A company car should be reimbursed using HMRC's advisory fuel rates, which are much lower because they cover fuel only, not wear and depreciation.
Treating commuting as business mileage
Ordinary travel between home and a permanent workplace is never business mileage, even if you do some work during the journey or occasionally work from home.
Resetting the 10,000-mile threshold per job or per car
The 10,000-mile threshold is a single annual total across the tax year for that vehicle type, not a fresh allowance for each employer, contract or vehicle change.
Assuming a shortfall from your employer is lost
If your employer pays less than the approved amount, you do not simply lose the difference — you can normally claim Mileage Allowance Relief on the shortfall.
Common questions
What is the HMRC mileage rate for 2026/27?
For cars and vans it is 55p per mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year and 25p per mile after that. Motorcycles are 24p per mile and bicycles 20p per mile.
Does the 10,000-mile threshold reset?
It applies per tax year, across all business miles in that vehicle type, not per journey or per employer engagement.
Can I claim mileage for commuting?
No. Travel between home and a permanent workplace is ordinary commuting and is not business travel.
What if my employer pays less than the approved rate?
You may be able to claim Mileage Allowance Relief on the shortfall. Our Mileage Allowance Relief calculator works out how much.
Are passenger payments compulsory?
No. An employer can pay up to 5p per qualifying passenger per business mile tax-free, but is not obliged to, and you cannot claim tax relief on passenger payments you did not receive.
Is the mileage rate different for electric cars?
No. HMRC's approved mileage rates for a driver's own vehicle are the same 55p/25p regardless of whether the car is petrol, diesel, hybrid or electric. There is no separate own-vehicle rate for electric cars.
What happens if my employer pays more than the approved rate?
The excess above the approved amount is treated as taxable earnings and should go through payroll, with tax and National Insurance deducted in the normal way.
Do I need to keep mileage records?
Yes. Keep a log of the date, journey, purpose and miles for every business trip. HMRC can ask for this evidence if a claim or reimbursement is queried.
Can self-employed people use these same rates?
Self-employed people can choose to use simplified expenses instead, which use the same 55p/25p car and van rates and 24p motorcycle rate, applied to the business proportion of their driving.
Can I switch between simplified expenses and claiming actual costs?
Not for the same vehicle. Once you use simplified expenses for a particular vehicle, you must keep using that method for as long as you use it for business.
Sources
Last reviewed: 7 September 2026 · Statutory rates: 2026/27. This calculator is information only and is not tax, accounting or financial advice.