Mileage Claims for the Self-Employed: How to Keep a Log HMRC Will Accept

A mileage log that HMRC will accept records, for every business journey, the date, the start and end point, the purpose of the trip and the number of business miles travelled. Get that right and a mileage claim self-employed HMRC 2026 enquiry becomes a short conversation rather than a disallowed deduction. Get it wrong and the whole claim is at risk, because HMRC treats an unsupported round number as an estimate, not a record.

Blue Tick Accountants, a Guildford-based UK tax advisory and accountancy practice, sees more vehicle claims challenged than almost any other sole trader expense. The reason is rarely dishonesty. It is that the log was reconstructed months later from a diary and a fuel card statement.

This guide covers HMRC's approved mileage rates for 2026/27, what a compliant log must contain, how business mileage differs from commuting, and whether the simplified mileage method or actual vehicle costs leave you better off.

Key Takeaways

• HMRC's approved mileage rate for cars and vans is 55p per business mile for the first 10,000 business miles in 2026/27, and 25p for every mile above 10,000.
• A sole trader claiming 12,000 business miles in 2026/27 deducts £6,000 from taxable profit, being 10,000 miles at 55p plus 2,000 miles at 25p.
• The simplified mileage method and the actual-cost method cannot be mixed for the same vehicle, and the method chosen applies for as long as that vehicle is used in the business.
• Cars are excluded from the Annual Investment Allowance, full expensing and the 40% first-year allowance, so under the actual-cost method relief arrives through writing down allowances at 14% or 6% a year.
• Business mileage records must be kept for at least five years after the 31 January filing deadline for the tax return they support.
• Sole traders and landlords with qualifying income above £50,000 have had to keep digital records and file quarterly updates since 6 April 2026 under Making Tax Digital for Income Tax.

What does HMRC require in a mileage log?

HMRC requires a contemporaneous record of each business journey showing the date, the start and end point, the business purpose and the miles travelled. Four columns and a running total are enough. The word that carries the weight is contemporaneous: the log should be created at or near the time of the journey, not assembled the following January.

Postcodes are the most defensible way to record start and end points, because the distance can be verified independently years later. "Client meeting" is a weak purpose entry. "Site visit, quote for kitchen refit, Mr Patel" is a strong one, because it ties the journey to a quotation already sitting in your records.

Two habits make a log survive scrutiny. Record the odometer reading on 6 April each year, so annual mileage reconciles against the business miles claimed. And avoid identical weekly figures, because exactly 200 miles every week for 52 weeks reads as an estimate.

How much can you claim per business mile in 2026/27?

The approved mileage allowance payment rate for cars and vans is 55p per mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year and 25p per mile after that. The counter resets on 6 April, so a heavy driver returns to the higher rate each tax year.

That rate is deliberately inclusive. It covers fuel, insurance, road tax, servicing, repairs, breakdown cover and depreciation, and nothing from that list may be claimed separately alongside it. Parking at a business destination and tolls sit outside the rate and stay deductible. Parking fines never are.

Once you adopt the mileage method for a vehicle you keep it until you dispose of that vehicle. You cannot claim 55p a mile in a cheap year and switch to actual costs in the year the clutch fails. You can run one vehicle on each method, which matters if you own both a car and a van.

Mileage rates or actual vehicle costs: which gives a bigger deduction?

Actual costs beat the mileage method where the vehicle is expensive and business use is high, and the mileage method wins almost everywhere else. Cars are treated less generously than most business assets: they are excluded from the Annual Investment Allowance, full expensing and the 40% first-year allowance introduced on 1 January 2026, so relief comes through writing down allowances at either the 14% main pool rate or the 6% special rate, depending on CO2 emissions. That is a slow drip next to capital allowances on business equipment, where the full cost is often relieved in year one.

Take a self-employed electrician driving 12,000 business miles in 2026/27 in a car bought for £18,000 and used 70% for business. Under the mileage method the claim is 10,000 miles at 55p, which is £5,500, plus 2,000 at 25p, which is £500: a £6,000 deduction. A basic rate taxpayer saves 20% income tax plus 6% Class 4 National Insurance on that, or £1,560. A higher rate taxpayer saves 40% plus 2%, or £2,520.

Under actual costs, suppose running costs are fuel £2,100, insurance £620, servicing and MOT £480, road tax £190 and breakdown cover £110, totalling £3,500. The 70% business share is £2,450. The writing down allowance at 14% is £2,520, of which 70% is £1,764. Total deduction: £4,214. The mileage method delivers £1,786 more relief, for a fraction of the paperwork.

Which journeys count as business mileage?

Business mileage is travel undertaken for the purposes of the trade: journeys to customers, suppliers, wholesalers, temporary work sites and business training, and travel between two workplaces on the same day.

Ordinary commuting is not deductible. If you operate from home and travel to a different customer each day, those journeys are business mileage because home is the business base. If you attend the same site regularly and habitually across a long engagement, HMRC may treat it as a permanent workplace and the journey as commuting, which is a frequent point of difference on long contracts.

Mixed journeys need care. A customer visit combined with a supermarket stop remains business mileage where the business purpose is the reason for the trip. A personal trip does not become deductible because a business call was taken on the way. Recording purpose honestly at the time protects the claim, and it belongs in the same records as what else you can deduct as a sole trader.

How does Making Tax Digital change mileage record-keeping?

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax turned mileage from an annual reconstruction into a quarterly one. Since 6 April 2026, sole traders and landlords whose gross turnover and rent exceeded £50,000 must keep digital records and submit quarterly updates on 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May, followed by a final declaration by 31 January.

Qualifying income is measured on gross turnover and rent before expenses, so a sole trader invoicing £58,000 with £22,000 of costs is inside the regime. Those above £30,000 join from 6 April 2027 and those above £20,000 from 6 April 2028.

A shoebox of receipts no longer works, because each quarter's figures must be submitted within about five weeks of the period ending. A phone-based log syncing to bookkeeping software solves this; a notebook does not. Our guide to quarterly reporting under Making Tax Digital sets out the thresholds and filing calendar in full.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much can I claim per business mile in 2026/27?

HMRC's approved mileage rate for cars and vans is 55p per business mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the 2026/27 tax year, then 25p for every mile above 10,000. The 10,000-mile counter resets at the start of each tax year on 6 April. The rate covers fuel, insurance, servicing, repairs and depreciation.

What does HMRC want to see in a mileage log?

HMRC expects a log showing, for each business journey, the date, the start and end point, the purpose of the trip and the number of business miles travelled, plus a running total for the tax year. Records must be kept for at least five years after the 31 January filing deadline for the return they support.

Can I claim mileage and fuel receipts for the same car?

No. The 55p approved mileage rate already includes fuel, insurance, servicing, repairs and depreciation, so claiming receipts on top would be a double deduction. You choose either the simplified mileage method or the actual-cost method for a vehicle, and that choice stays in place for as long as you own the vehicle.

Does the drive from home to a client count as business mileage?

A journey from home to a client's premises is business mileage if your home is your business base. Travel to a site you attend regularly and habitually can be treated as ordinary commuting instead, which is not deductible. Record the purpose of each journey so the distinction is documented at the time.

Do I have to keep my mileage records digitally now?

If your gross self-employment turnover and rent exceeded £50,000, you have been required to keep digital records and file quarterly updates since 6 April 2026 under Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. Below that level, spreadsheet or paper records remain acceptable until your start date arrives in April 2027 or April 2028.

How Blue Tick Can Help

Blue Tick Accountants advises sole traders across the UK on vehicle claims, from choosing between the mileage and actual-cost methods when a vehicle first enters the business to defending a claim once HMRC opens an enquiry. The practice also sets up digital record-keeping that satisfies Making Tax Digital without adding hours to your week. Head to our website and book a meeting now.

Conclusion

A mileage claim is only as strong as the log behind it, and the log has to be built journey by journey rather than reconstructed in January. At 55p for the first 10,000 business miles, the simplified method is generous enough that most sole traders come out ahead with it, and it demands far less paperwork than actual costs. Run the comparison once, when the vehicle first enters the business, because the method you pick is fixed for as long as you keep that vehicle.

About the Author

This guide was written by Leon, founder of Blue Tick Accountants, a Guildford-based UK tax advisory and accountancy practice that helps self-employed people, landlords and limited company owners across the UK. It was last reviewed for the 2026/27 tax year.

This article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute tax, legal, or financial advice. Tax rules are subject to change and their application will depend on your individual circumstances. You should always seek advice from a qualified professional before taking action. Blue Tick Accountants accepts no liability for decisions made on the basis of this content.