Claiming Mileage on Your Taxes: 2026 Guide

Claiming a mileage deduction can meaningfully reduce your tax bill — but the rules differ depending on whether you are self-employed, an employee, or driving for medical or charitable purposes.

Self-employed: Schedule C

If you are self-employed, a sole proprietor, or an independent contractor, you can deduct business miles on Schedule C. The 2026 IRS standard mileage rate is 72.5 cents per mile for business.

Employees: limited deduction

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 suspended the federal deduction for unreimbursed employee business expenses through at least 2025 (tax year). For most employees, unreimbursed mileage is not deductible on your federal return. Some states — including California, New York and New Jersey — still allow the deduction on state returns.

Medical mileage

You can deduct miles driven to receive medical care on Schedule A (itemised deductions), subject to the 7.5% AGI threshold. The 2026 medical mileage rate is 20.5 cents per mile.

Charitable mileage

Miles driven for a qualified charity are deductible on Schedule A at 14 cents per mile, a rate fixed by statute.

Standard mileage vs. actual expenses

• Standard mileage: multiply miles × the IRS rate. Simple, no receipts needed for vehicle costs.
• Actual expenses: track gas, insurance, depreciation, repairs and multiply by the business-use percentage. Better when your vehicle costs are high.
• You must choose your method in the first year you use the vehicle for business and generally stick with it.

Keep a contemporaneous log

The IRS requires a mileage log with the date, destination, business purpose and miles for every trip. Reconstruct logs are rarely accepted in an audit. Use PerDiemWise to total your miles per trip so the log is always ready.