Commuting expenses are a recurring problem for employees and companies alike. The deduction of these expenses is governed by precise tax and social security rules that you need to master to optimize your situation. Understanding the terms and conditions of reimbursement, the applicable scales and the conditions of exemption will enable you to avoid tax reassessments while maximizing your benefits. Optimal management of your business expenses requires in-depth knowledge of these mechanisms.

What are Home to Work Mileage Expenses?

Home-work mileage expenses are expenses incurred by an employee to get from his or her home to his or her usual place of work. These expenses include wear and tear on the vehicle, fuel consumption, insurance and maintenance. The tax treatment of these expenses differs depending on whether you are an employee or an employer.

For salaried employees, there are two options: the flat-rate deduction of 10% automatically applied to your income, or the deduction of actual business expenses. This second option requires you to justify each expense, and can be advantageous if your expenses exceed the flat-rate allowance.

Distinction between commuting and business travel

You need to differentiate between commuting and business travel. The former is a personal journey between your home and your fixed workplace. The latter corresponds to journeys made in the course of your professional activity, away from your usual place of work.

This distinction has a direct impact on the applicable tax and social security system, as well as your total tax burden. Business travel is treated more favorably, with total exemption from reimbursement up to the limit of the tax scale. Home-work journeys are subject to more restrictive rules, and can only be reimbursed under specific conditions.

Tax scale for mileage expenses

Each year, the tax authorities publish a mileage scale in the Bulletin Officiel des Finances Publiques, which sets the deductible amount per kilometer driven. This 2024 scale varies according to the tax rating of your vehicle and the number of kilometers driven in the year. The annual revision of these amounts takes into account changes in vehicle operating costs.

For motor vehicles, the 2024 scale is as follows for the first bracket (up to 5,000 km):

• 3 HP: €0.502 per kilometer
• 4 HP: €0.575 per kilometer
• 5 HP: €0.603 per kilometer
• 6 HP: €0.631 per kilometer
• 7 HP and over: €0.661 per kilometer

Specific formulas apply for distances over 5,000 km and over 20,000 km per year, with decreasing coefficients. The tax authorities also propose a separate scale for motorized two-wheelers, ranging from €0.299 to €0.518, depending on engine capacity.

Let’s take a concrete example: for a 5 HP vehicle making a daily journey of 25 kilometers (50 km round trip) over 220 working days, you drive 11,000 kilometers a year. The deductible amount is €6,633, according to the formula applicable to this mileage bracket. This calculation illustrates the substantial tax advantage of deducting actual expenses for long-distance commuting.

You must keep all supporting documents for at least six years: vehicle registration document, maintenance invoices,insurance policies and fuel receipts. The distance used corresponds to the shortest route between your home and your place of work, which can be calculated using standard mapping tools. This documentation is your protection in the event of a tax audit.

Ceiling on Deductible Distance

To prevent abuse of the law, the tax authorities limit the deduction to 40 kilometers per journey (80 km round trip), unless special circumstances can be justified in accordance with the BOI-RSA-BASE-30-50-30 doctrine. You need to build up a convincing case with supporting documents: previous lease attesting to your former tax domicile, spouse’s professional transfer, shared childcare constraints or proven difficulties in the local real estate market. The administration examines these requests on a case-by-case basis, and systematically checks the consistency of distances declared via geolocation during inspections, making it essential to keep detailed supporting documents for any excess over the mileage limit.

Employer reimbursement: Social and Fiscal Regime

When your employer reimburses you for mileage to and from work, the social and tax treatment depends on compliance with the tax scale. Reimbursements up to the limit of the scale are exempt from social security contributions and income tax. Beyond that, the sums paid constitute additional salary subject to social security contributions.

You need to draw up a detailed expense report listing the dates, distances and reasons for travel. This documentation is essential in the event of a tax or social security audit. The employer must keep these receipts for at least six years.

Special case of the Sustainable Mobility Package

The sustainable mobility package (FMD), introduced by the 2019 Loi d’Orientation des Mobilités (LOM), allows your employer to pay you up to €700 a year by 2024 for your soft mobility travel. The following are eligible: bicycles (conventional and electric, personal or rental), electric scooters, motorized personal mobility devices, carpooling (driver or passenger), car-sharing and public transport excluding subscriptions. The sums paid are exempt from social security contributions and income tax up to this limit.

You can combine this package with the mandatory 50% reimbursement of your public transport season ticket. This combination optimizes your net remuneration while encouraging environmentally-friendly modes of transport. Employers are under no obligation to set up this scheme, unless there is a collective agreement to the contrary. In the event of an incomplete year (recruitment or departure during the year), the amount of the package is prorated to the time of presence.

To benefit from the FMD, you need to provide your employer with supporting documents: car-pooling certificates, invoices for the purchase or rental of bicycles or scooters, trip logs for car-sharing services. For example, an electric bike rental costing €50 a month represents €600 a year eligible for the package. Your employer must mention this package on your pay slip and declare it in the DSN (Déclaration Sociale Nominative) with the personnel type code CTP 039. This traceability guarantees the social and tax exemption of the scheme.

Tax optimization for employees

Optimizing your home-to-work mileage expenses requires a comparative analysis between the flat-rate deduction and actual expenses. You need to calculate your annual expenses precisely: fuel, insurance, maintenance, tax depreciation of the vehicle. If your total business expenses exceed the flat-rate deduction of 10% (capped at €13,522 in 2024), the actual expenses option becomes financially advantageous. As a general rule, this break-even point is reached from 15 to 20 kilometers of commuting per day for an average employee.

Let’s take a concrete example: for an annual salary of €35,000, the flat-rate deduction of 10% represents €3,500. If your actual expenses amount to €6,500 (€4,500 for mileage + €1,200 for professional meals + €800 for training and documentation), you benefit from an additional deduction of €3,000, thus reducing your income tax. This option also allows you to deduct your other professional expenses: meals away from home, specific professional clothing, training not covered by your employer, or technical documentation.

To exercise this option, tick box 1AK (or 1BK for the spouse) on your annual 2042 tax return, and detail your expenses on an attached note. Please note: this choice constitutes an implicit commitment for three consecutive years. You must then declare all your business expenses each year, not just mileage expenses. This globalization maximizes your deduction if you regularly incur significant business expenses.

Complementary Optimization Strategies

There are several ways to optimize your tax situation. You can negotiate with your employer to have your expenses reimbursed within the limits of the tax scale, which increases your net remuneration without any tax impact. Using a high-powered vehicle increases the amount deductible per kilometer.

Regular carpooling with colleagues can also generate tax-exempt income within the limits of the tax scale. You must, however, comply with the legal conditions for carpooling, and keep receipts for journeys made. This income does not constitute a commercial activity, as long as you remain within the framework of shared expenses.

Tax Risks and Controls

The tax authorities regularly check the deductibility of home-work mileage expenses. You must be able to justify the reality and amount of your journeys. Auditors check the consistency between the distance declared, your place of residence and your place of work, using mapping tools (Google Maps, Mappy). They may also ask to consult your vehicle’s odometer and cross-check this data with your fuel invoices to detect any inconsistencies.

In the event of a tax reassessment, you are liable to pay the taxes evaded, plus interest on arrears at a rate of 0.20% per month (i.e. 2.4% per annum for 2024). Penalties vary according to the seriousness of the offence: 10% for simple under-declaration, 40% for deliberate failure to comply (distances manifestly overvalued without justification), and up to 80% for proven fraudulent maneuvers (false supporting documents, tampering with meters, falsified documents). The limitation period is three years from the year in which the tax return was filed, extended to six years in the case of undeclared foreign income.

Keeping your supporting documents in a safe place is your best protection. In the event of a tax audit, the tax authorities will send you a request for supporting documents and, if necessary, a proposal for rectification. You then have 30 days in which to respond, and can ask for a meeting with the inspector or refer the matter to his or her superior. These procedural guarantees enable you to contest the proposed adjustments and present your arguments before any final decision is taken.

Specific Points of Vigilance

Certain situations attract particular attention from the tax authorities during audits. Distances in excess of 40 kilometers require documented justification. Frequent changes of vehicle during the year raise questions about the consistency of declarations. The administration systematically compares your fuel purchases with your declared kilometers: for 10,000 kilometers driven with an average consumption of 7 liters per 100 kilometers, you need to justify the purchase of around 700 liters of fuel. A discrepancy of more than 20% between fuel purchased and kilometers declared automatically triggers an in-depth check.

Recent case law shows increased vigilance in situations of partial teleworking. It is imperative that you adjust your deduction in proportion to the actual days spent on site. A concrete example: out of 220 annual working days, if you telework 2 days a week, you telework 88 days, i.e. only 132 days of physical presence (60% of the time). Your deductible mileage expenses should be reduced by 40% accordingly. If you telework 3 days a week, you only work on site 44 days a year: deducting 220 days constitutes a 400% overstatement that is immediately detectable in the event of an audit, and exposes you to a definite reassessment.

Your employer must also adjust its mileage reimbursements to your actual days of presence. You must provide a telecommuting certificate or an amendment to your contract specifying the number of days telecommuted. This documentation protects both employee and employer in the event of an URSSAF or tax audit. Keep a detailed monthly record of your days on site to justify your declarations and anticipate any questions from the authorities.

Special cases and complex situations

Some situations require a more in-depth analysis. If you have several places of work, you need to determine your main place of work in order to calculate your home-to-work mileage expenses. Travel to secondary sites constitutes business travel, with a separate tax regime.

Specific rules apply to cross-border workers, employees on long-term assignments or those receiving a long-distance travel allowance. The tax status of your situation determines the applicable regime, in terms of both income tax and social security contributions. An error in analysis can have significant financial consequences.

Managing Situations of Change

Moving house, changing employer or modifying your place of work all have an impact on your mileage expenses. You need to recalculate your deduction pro rata temporis for each situation. The French tax authorities will accept several different scales for the same year, provided you can justify the changes.

Converting from permanent to self-employed status radically changes the way you treat your expenses. As a self-employed worker, you deduct your actual expenses from your professional income according to different rules. This transition requires professional support to optimize your new tax situation and avoid qualification errors.

Outlook and Regulatory Developments

The kilometric scale is revised annually by ministerial decree, generally published in February-March of each year. This update follows changes in vehicle operating costs (fuel, maintenance, insurance). For 2024, the scale has been increased by 5.4% compared with 2023, reflecting the rise in energy prices.

You should regularly consult the BOFIP (Bulletin Officiel des Finances Publiques) to take note of the new scales and adapt your tax returns accordingly. Legislative changes in the area of sustainable mobility, in particular the gradual extension of the sustainable mobility lump-sum to €700 per year, also represent opportunities to optimize your social and tax management.