Travel allowance claim

Work out, in one place, whether your travel allowance is taxed by SARS and how much you can deduct against it. If your employer pays you a travel allowance for the business use of your own car, SARS adds that allowance to your income and then lets you deduct your business travel back out. This calculator runs the deemed-cost and actual-cost methods, splits business from private kilometres, and shows the full calculation, with the rule behind each number. Free, no signup, current to the 2026 year of assessment (1 March 2025 – 28 February 2026).

→ Calculate my travel deduction – runs in your browser, workings shown.

How the travel allowance deduction works in South Africa

If your employer pays you a travel allowance (a fixed amount to cover business use of your own car), SARS includes that allowance in your income and then lets you deduct your business travel against it. The deduction is governed by section 8(1)(b) of the Income Tax Act. Two things decide what you get back:

1. A logbook is compulsory. SARS will disallow your entire claim if you cannot produce a logbook for the tax year. Record your opening and closing odometer readings and the business kilometres for each trip (date, destination, reason, km). SARS travel logbook.
2. Only business kilometres count. Travel between your home and your usual place of work is private and is not deductible. Client visits, site travel and trips between offices are business.

Two ways to claim: actual cost vs deemed cost

• Deemed cost (most common): You don't keep fuel and repair slips. Instead SARS publishes an annual prescribed cost table (a fixed cost, fuel cost and maintenance cost per kilometre, based on the value of your vehicle). Your deduction = business km × the deemed cost per km from that table. SARS prescribed rate and cost tables.
• Actual cost: You keep records of all running costs (fuel, repairs, insurance, finance, licence) plus wear-and-tear, and claim the business-use portion.

You may use whichever method gives the larger deduction, but both require the logbook.

What gets taxed during the year (PAYE)

Your employer applies PAYE to your travel allowance during the year: 80% of the allowance is subject to PAYE, or 20% if the employer is satisfied that at least 80% of your driving is for business. The final deduction is worked out on assessment when you file, using your logbook, so the monthly PAYE is only a provisional withholding.

Reimbursive travel is different

If instead you are reimbursed per kilometre for business trips, SARS sets a prescribed rate per kilometre. Reimbursements at or below that rate, with no other travel allowance, are treated favourably; amounts above it are taxed. The calculator flags which case you are in.

How this calculator works it out

Enter your total and business kilometres from your logbook and your vehicle value (or actual costs). TaxRationale applies the current SARS deemed-cost table, splits business vs private travel, and shows the full calculation, the deduction, the line items, and the rule behind each number, so you can see exactly how the result is reached and hand it to SARS with confidence.

New to this? Read the full Travel allowance tax guide first, which covers the logbook rules and the two methods in context. This page is the calculator.

→ Calculate my travel allowance deduction – free, no signup, runs in your browser.