HMRC mileage rates (AMAP)
What an employer can pay, tax-free, for business miles in an employee's own car. The rate is tapered, so the headline figure only holds to 10,000 miles a year.
HMRC's approved mileage allowance for cars and vans is 55p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year and 25p for every mile after that, in 2026 to 2027. Because the rate is tapered, a driver covering 15,000 business miles a year averages 45p, which is what the headline rate was before it rose (THRIVE, from HMRC).
Cite this
THRIVE HMRC mileage rates. thrivefleet.co.uk/data/mileage-rates (accessed 28 August 2026).
What you actually average
Blended pence per mile by annual business mileage
| Category | Value |
|---|---|
| 5k | 55p |
| 10k | 55p |
| 15k | 45p |
| 20k | 40p |
| 30k | 35p |
AMAP is not the advisory fuel rate, and the difference is the point. AMAP is what an employer may pay tax-free when an employee drives their own car on business. The advisory fuel rate covers fuel in a company car, currently 17p for a 1401cc to 2000cc petrol car. The gap of 38p is not generosity: it is HMRC's allowance for wear, depreciation, insurance, servicing and tax, which the driver of their own car pays and the company-car driver does not.
The rise is smaller than it looks. The rate held at 45p from 2011 to 2026 and has risen to 55p, but only the first 10,000 miles moved. The 25p rate above that did not change at all. Work the taper and a driver covering 15,000 business miles a year averages exactly 45p, the old headline. Above that they are worse off in real terms than the headline suggests, and the higher the mileage the more the increase disappears.
An employer may pay less than the approved rate, in which case the employee can claim Mileage Allowance Relief on the shortfall. Pay more, and the excess is taxable. This is also the number that governs grey fleet: the moment reimbursement is set below AMAP, the cost quietly moves onto the driver.
| 2026 to 2027 | First 10,000 | Thereafter |
|---|---|---|
| Cars and vans | 55p | 25p |
| Motor cycles | 24p | 24p |
| Bicycles | 20p | 20p |
| 2011 to 2026 | ||
| Cars and vans | 45p | 25p |
| Motor cycles | 24p | 24p |
| Bicycles | 20p | 20p |
Effective rate = (10,000 x first-band rate + remaining miles x over-10,000 rate) / total miles. The parity mileage solves that expression for the previous headline rate.
Rates from HMRC travel, mileage and fuel rates and allowances under the Open Government Licence v3.0, refreshed from the GOV.UK content API. Both the current and the previous table are stored, which is what makes the comparison possible.
Business miles only, and the 10,000-mile band resets each tax year. Passenger payments and the separate rules for volunteers are outside this dataset.
Figures checked against GOV.UK on 28 August 2026.
Free JSON API — no key, open CORS, cache-friendly:
curl https://www.thrivefleet.co.uk/api/v1/rates{ "rates": [ … ] }Attribution is requested, never required — see the data terms and the API guide.
What is the HMRC mileage rate?
55p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles in your own car in 2026 to 2027, then 25p for every mile after. Motorcycles are 24p and bicycles 20p at any mileage.
Is the rise from 45p to 55p as good as it sounds?
Only below 10,000 miles. The 25p rate above that did not change, so at 15,000 business miles a year the blended rate is exactly 45p, the old headline, and it keeps falling above that.
Is AMAP the same as the advisory fuel rate?
No. AMAP is for your own car and covers fuel plus wear, depreciation, insurance and servicing. The advisory fuel rate covers fuel only, in a company car, at 17p for a 1401cc to 2000cc petrol. Using one where the other applies is the most common mileage mistake.