How to Track Mileage for Tax Deductions in Ireland

Every kilometre you drive for work is potentially money back in your pocket at tax time. Yet most Irish tradespeople don't track their mileage properly — leaving hundreds or even thousands of euros on the table each year.

This guide explains exactly how mileage deductions work for Irish tradespeople, what records you need to keep, and the easiest ways to track your business travel.

How Mileage Deductions Work in Ireland

When you use your own vehicle for business travel, you can claim a deduction against your taxable income. There are two methods:

Method 1: Civil Service Mileage Rates

You can claim a fixed rate per kilometre based on Revenue-approved civil service rates. For 2025, these are:

• Up to 1,500 km: 37.95 cent per km
• 1,501 – 5,500 km: 70.00 cent per km
• 5,501 – 25,000 km: 27.55 cent per km
• Over 25,000 km: 21.36 cent per km

This method is simpler — you just need to track kilometres driven. No need to keep fuel receipts or calculate depreciation.

Method 2: Actual Costs

Alternatively, you can claim a proportion of your actual vehicle costs based on business use. This includes:

• Fuel
• Insurance
• Road tax
• Servicing and repairs
• Depreciation or lease costs
• Tolls and parking

You'll need to calculate what percentage of your total driving is for business and apply that to your costs.

Which Method Should You Use?

For most tradespeople with a van, actual costs often work out better — especially if you're doing high mileage. But the civil service rates are simpler and require less record-keeping.

Run the numbers both ways (or ask your accountant) to see which gives you the bigger deduction.

What Counts as Business Mileage?

You can claim mileage for journeys that are wholly and exclusively for business purposes:

• Travel to job sites: Customer locations, construction sites, properties you're working on
• Supplier trips: Picking up materials from Chadwicks, Screwfix, wholesalers
• Bank and post office: Business banking, posting quotes
• Meetings: Accountant visits, client consultations, quotes
• Training: Courses, certifications, trade events

What Doesn't Count

• Commuting: Travel from home to your regular place of work (if you have one)
• Personal errands: Stopping at the supermarket on the way home
• Private use: Weekend trips, family journeys

Good news for tradespeople: If you work from home and travel directly to job sites, that's business mileage — not commuting. This is a significant advantage over office-based workers.

What Records Do You Need?

Revenue requires you to maintain a mileage log. For each business journey, record:

• Date: When the journey took place
• Starting point: Where you left from
• Destination: Where you went
• Purpose: Why the journey was necessary (e.g., "Job at 12 Main St" or "Collect materials from Chadwicks")
• Kilometres: Distance travelled

Keep this log throughout the year. Don't try to reconstruct it from memory in January — Revenue won't accept that.

The Easy Way: Mileage Tracking Apps

Paper logbooks work but are tedious. Modern apps make tracking effortless:

Automatic GPS Tracking

Apps like MileIQ, Driversnote, or TradeTime's built-in tracker detect when you're driving and log journeys automatically. At the end of each day, you just swipe to mark trips as business or personal.

What to Look For

• Automatic detection: Don't rely on remembering to start tracking
• Easy classification: One tap to mark business vs. personal
• Reports: Generate summaries for your accountant or Revenue
• Irish support: Rates and rules that apply here, not the US or UK

Calculating Your Deduction

Let's work through an example:

Scenario: You're a plumber who drives 25,000 km per year, of which 20,000 km is business travel.

Using Civil Service Rates:

• First 1,500 km: 1,500 × €0.3795 = €569
• Next 4,000 km (1,501-5,500): 4,000 × €0.70 = €2,800
• Next 14,500 km (5,501-20,000): 14,500 × €0.2755 = €3,995
• Total deduction: €7,364

At a 40% marginal tax rate, that's €2,946 back in your pocket.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Not keeping records: "I drove about 15,000 business kilometres" isn't good enough. You need a log.
• Claiming personal travel: That weekend trip to Cork wasn't business, even if you met a potential client.
• Forgetting small trips: The quick run to the builder's merchant counts. Track everything.
• Double counting: If you claim mileage rates, you can't also claim fuel receipts for the same vehicle.
• Waiting until year-end: Start tracking now. Reconstructing a year of travel is impossible.

If You Have a Company Van

If your business owns or leases the van (not you personally), mileage rates don't apply. Instead, the business claims actual costs as expenses. Keep all receipts for fuel, insurance, repairs, etc.

However, if you use a company van for personal travel, there may be a Benefit-in-Kind (BIK) tax implication. Talk to your accountant about this.

Getting Started Today

1. Download a mileage app — MileIQ, Driversnote, or TradeTime
2. Enable automatic tracking so you don't forget
3. Classify trips daily — takes 30 seconds
4. Run a monthly report to see your accumulated deduction

Every kilometre you don't track is money you're giving away. Start today, and your future self (and bank account) will thank you.