Your commute never counts
Driving between home and your regular place of work is commuting, and the IRS doesn't let you deduct it, however far it is. Making a work call or carrying tools on the way doesn't change that.
Drives that do count
- From one workplace to another on the same day, such as from your shop to a customer's house.
- To see clients or customers, or to pick up supplies for a job.
- To a temporary work site, one expected to last a year or less, when you also have a regular workplace away from home.
- From a home office to anywhere else you work, when your home is your main place of business. See below.
The home office rule
If your home is your principal place of business, the drive from home to a client, a job site or the bank for your business is a business drive, not a commute. This is what makes most of a freelancer's or tradesperson's driving deductible.
Broadly, your home counts if it's where you run the business: the office where you do your admin, scheduling and billing, used regularly and only for work. If you rent a separate office or shop, that becomes your regular workplace, and the drive there is a commute again.
The cases that catch people out
- Errands on the way. Stop for groceries between two jobs and only the direct route between the jobs counts.
- A second job on your day off. Driving from home to it is commuting. Driving straight from your first job to your second on the same day is a business drive.
- Rideshare and delivery. Miles driven while you're working, heading to a pickup or carrying a passenger or order, are business. Whether the drive to where you start your shift counts depends on whether your home is your principal place of business, so ask a tax professional.
- A job that runs long. A site you expected to finish in six months stops being temporary from the day it's clear it will run past a year.
Sorting drives in MileLock
Every drive MileLock records lands in your Inbox, and you swipe it business or personal. Swipe your commute personal. You can also set your work hours or mark a route you drive often, and MileLock sorts those drives for you. Keep a note of why you made each business drive; it's one of the four things the IRS wants.
Sources
This guide explains the IRS rules in plain English. It isn't tax advice; for your own situation, ask a tax professional.
Let MileLock keep the log for you
It records every drive on its own, you swipe business or personal, and the IRS-ready log is one tap away. Free for 30 drives a month.
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