The short answer
HMRC has raised the approved mileage rate for cars and vans from 45p to 55p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles, for journeys from 6 April 2026 (the 2026/27 tax year). After 10,000 miles it stays at 25p. The 45p rate had been frozen since 2011/12, so this is the first rise in 15 years.
If you let property as an individual (not through a limited company), you can use these fixed rates for journeys you make for your rental business: inspections, repairs, meeting contractors, viewings, check-ins and check-outs, and council or licensing visits. Instead of adding up fuel, insurance and repair bills, you claim a set amount per business mile.
The catch is the records. HMRC expects a dated log of each journey, and most landlords try to rebuild a year of trips from memory in January.
Key facts
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Cars and vans, 2026/27: 55p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year, then 25p. GOV.UK
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Cars and vans, 2011/12 to 2025/26: 45p for the first 10,000 miles, then 25p. Journeys up to 5 April 2026 stay at 45p. GOV.UK
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Motorcycles: 24p for every business mile, unchanged. GOV.UK
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Who can use it: unincorporated landlords, since 2017/18. HMRC PIM2220
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The vehicle rule: not for a vehicle you have claimed capital allowances on. Once you use the rate for a vehicle, you keep using it while that vehicle stays in the business. HMRC BIM75005
What changed on 6 April 2026
The rate for the first 10,000 business miles went from 45p to 55p: 10p more a mile, or £100 more for every 1,000 business miles. The 25p rate over 10,000 miles and the 24p motorcycle rate did not change. The 10,000 miles count all your business miles in cars and vans for the tax year together.
The rate follows the date of the journey, not the date you file. Your 2025/26 return, due by 31 January 2027, uses 45p for all of that year's trips. The 55p rate first appears on your 2026/27 return.
Who can claim it
You can use the fixed mileage rate if you let property as an individual, on your own or jointly, and report it on your Self Assessment return. It is not for:
- Limited companies. A company works out vehicle costs differently. Speak to your accountant.
- A vehicle you have claimed capital allowances on. You stay with actual costs for that vehicle.
- Landlords using the £1,000 property allowance. The allowance replaces your expenses, so you can't claim mileage as well. If your expenses, mileage included, are more than £1,000, claiming expenses usually works out better. GOV.UK
Which journeys count
The test is whether the journey is made wholly and exclusively for your property business. Journeys that usually count:
- Inspections and routine visits.
- Repairs, including meeting a contractor or dropping off materials.
- Viewings with prospective tenants.
- Check-ins and check-outs.
- Council and licensing visits, such as an HMO inspection.
- Travel between your properties on the same round.
Journeys that don't:
- Private trips, even if you pass one of your properties.
- Mixed trips. HMRC's example: combining a property visit with your weekly food shop makes the journey partly private, so it isn't allowed. A tiny detour, like stopping for a newspaper, doesn't spoil a business trip.
- Trips that are really a visit to friends or family.
Where you set off from matters too. If you run your lettings from home, business trips from home to your properties can count. If a letting agent does all, or almost all, of the work, HMRC says your business is likely to be based at the agent's office, so trips from home are not normally allowed. HMRC PIM2220
Worked examples
1. A monthly round of three properties
Priya runs her lettings from home and drives a round of her three properties once a month:
- Home to Oak Street: 6 miles
- Oak Street to Mill Lane: 4 miles
- Mill Lane to Station Road: 5 miles
- Station Road to home: 7 miles
That is 6 + 4 + 5 + 7 = 22 miles a round, and 22 × 12 = 264 miles a year. She also makes 10 one-off trips (a boiler repair, viewings, a check-in, meeting a roofer), averaging 12 miles there and back: 10 × 12 = 120 miles.
Her 2026/27 total is 264 + 120 = 384 business miles:
- At 55p: 384 × £0.55 = £211.20
- At the old 45p: 384 × £0.45 = £172.80
- Extra from the new rate: £211.20 − £172.80 = £38.40
The deduction reduces her taxable rental profit. At basic rate (20%) it saves £211.20 × 0.20 = £42.24 in tax; at higher rate (40%), £211.20 × 0.40 = £84.48. Not huge, but it comes back every year, and landlords without a log usually claim nothing.
2. Crossing 10,000 miles
Dan manages 20 properties across a county himself and drives 12,500 business miles in 2026/27:
- First 10,000 miles at 55p: 10,000 × £0.55 = £5,500
- Next 2,500 miles at 25p: 2,500 × £0.25 = £625
- Total claim: £5,500 + £625 = £6,125
At the old rates it would have been £4,500 + £625 = £5,125. The new rate adds £1,000, the most it can add in a year (10,000 miles × 10p).
The switch can land mid-trip. If Dan has already driven 9,980 business miles and then drives 50 more, 20 miles are at 55p and 30 at 25p: 20 × £0.55 = £11.00, plus 30 × £0.25 = £7.50, so £18.50, not 50 × £0.55 = £27.50. That's why trip order matters, and why rebuilding a year from memory goes wrong.
3. The same trip either side of 6 April
Sam drives 30 miles there and back to meet a plumber at a flat:
- On 3 April 2026 (2025/26): 30 × £0.45 = £13.50
- On 7 April 2026 (2026/27): 30 × £0.55 = £16.50
Same trip, £3.00 apart, because the journey date decides the tax year and the rate.
Want to check your own round? Our free landlord mileage calculator works out each leg from postcodes, uses the right rate for the date and switches to 25p at the right point.
The records to keep
HMRC expects a mileage log of journeys made solely for your property business. For each trip, note:
- The date.
- Where you started and finished, and each property you visited, in order.
- Why you went, such as "inspection" or "met the electrician".
- The miles.
- The vehicle, if you use more than one.
Keep records for at least 5 years after the 31 January deadline for that tax year. GOV.UK
Write it down when you make the trip, not months later. Our guide to landlord expenses and record keeping covers what else to track, and the free rent income spreadsheet totals your property expenses for the tax year.
The capital allowances catch
The mileage rate covers everything it costs to buy, run and maintain the vehicle: fuel, servicing, repairs, insurance, road tax, MOT and wear and tear. So for each vehicle you claim either the mileage rate or the actual costs, never both.
- Claimed capital allowances on the car or van? You can't use the mileage rate for it.
- Used the mileage rate for a vehicle? Keep using it while that vehicle is in the business. You can only change method when you change vehicle.
- Still claimable on top: parking, tolls and congestion charges for a business journey, and other travel such as train fares. HMRC BIM75005
Not sure what was claimed for your car in earlier years? Check with your accountant before you switch.
Common mistakes
- Using 55p for 2025/26 trips. Journeys before 6 April 2026 are at 45p.
- Forgetting the 25p switch after 10,000 business miles.
- Claiming fuel or insurance as well. The rate already covers them.
- Switching method for the same vehicle.
- Counting mixed trips where shopping or a social visit was part of the reason.
- Claiming a cycle or passenger rate. Neither applies to property business mileage.
- No log. A January guess is hard to back up if HMRC asks.
FAQ
Does 55p apply to my 2025/26 tax return? No. Those journeys are at 45p. The 55p rate applies from 6 April 2026, on your 2026/27 return.
Is the 10,000 miles per car? No, it counts the business miles in all your cars and vans for the tax year together. Motorcycle miles are separate, at 24p.
Can I claim mileage if I use a letting agent? Only for journeys made wholly for your property business. If the agent does all or almost all of the work, trips from home are not normally allowed.
What about a bicycle? There is no fixed rate for bicycles in the property mileage rules.
Can I add extra for a passenger? No. The number of passengers doesn't change the rate for landlords.
My property is owned by my limited company. Can I use this? The fixed mileage deduction is for unincorporated landlords. Ask your accountant how your company should claim.
How AskPortfoliq helps
The hard part of mileage isn't the maths, it's remembering to write it down. With AskPortfoliq you log trips by message as you go. On WhatsApp, Telegram or the web assistant, send something like "drove to Oak Street and Mill Lane". AskPortfoliq works out the miles from your home postcode, shows the route, miles and £ at the right rate, and logs the trip when you say yes, with your running total for the tax year.
Every trip is a dated record, split across the properties you visited, with 55p and 25p applied in date order. It flows into your tax-year figures and accountant pack with the rest of your costs. For a quick one-off answer, use the free landlord mileage calculator.
This guide explains HMRC's published rules as of October 2026. It is not tax advice; if your situation is unusual, check with your accountant.