What is the CRA mileage rate 2026?

73¢ per kilometre for the first 5,000 business kilometres and 67¢ after that, effective January 1, 2026. The territories (Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon) add 4¢ per kilometre.

What is the IRS mileage rate 2026?

72.5¢ per mile for business use from January 1 to June 30, 2026, and 76¢ per mile from July 1, 2026. It is designed to cover fuel, depreciation, insurance and maintenance.

How large are OSHA fines and CRA penalties?

OSHA fines reach up to $165,514 per willful or repeat violation. CRA penalties on unverified mileage allowances are modeled at $50K–$250K per audit. Both are per-incident, not annual.

How does this audit estimate uninsured drivers?

It applies a documented rate of roughly one in three to drivers using their own personal vehicles for work only — company vehicles are insured by the business, so they're excluded. One in three is the high end of a real range, shown as an estimate.

What are the penalties if an employer can't prove business mileage in the US or Canada?

Without a verified per-trip log, the IRS or CRA can treat a mileage allowance as taxable income and add penalties plus interest — modeled at $50K–$250K per audit for an unverified program. OSHA fines reach up to $165,514 per willful or repeat violation and Ontario OHSA corporate fines reach $2M, plus possible criminal exposure for negligence if an uninsured employee crashes on a work trip. A GPS- and odometer-verified log is what makes the program defensible.

What happens if an employee is uninsured while driving their own vehicle for work?

If an uninsured driver crashes on a work trip, their personal insurer can deny the claim because the policy excludes business use — that insurance denial, and the cost behind it, then looks to the employer, alongside OSHA fines, CRA penalties and potential criminal exposure for negligence. Roughly one in three employees driving their own vehicle for work is uninsured for business use.

Is mileage reimbursement taxable?

Mileage reimbursed at or below the CRA or IRS standard rate (CRA 73¢/km for the first 5,000 km and 67¢/km after; IRS 72.5¢/mile from January 1 to June 30, 2026 and 76¢/mile from July 1, 2026) is generally tax-free to the employee and deductible to the employer. Reimbursement above the standard rate, or a flat allowance paid without a mileage record, can become taxable income.

What are the CRA mileage reimbursement rules for employers?

To keep an allowance tax-free, CRA expects it to be based on actual business kilometres at a reasonable per-kilometre rate (the 2026 rate is 73¢/km for the first 5,000 km and 67¢/km after) and supported by a contemporaneous log. Flat monthly car allowances and unsupported estimates can be reassessed as taxable income with penalties.

Are employers liable when employees drive their own vehicles for work?

Yes. Under vicarious liability and provincial OHS duties — for example Ontario's OHSA — an employer can be held responsible when an employee causes a crash while driving their personal vehicle on company business, even though the company doesn't own the car. If the employee's personal policy denies the business-use claim, the cost lands on the employer.

Mileage Reimbursement Software for Small Teams

FOR HR, OFFICE AND FLEET MANAGERS

Employee mileage reimbursement for
teams and fleets

Your drivers' phones log every work trip. You approve mileage claims in one click and keep an audit-ready CRA and IRS record for every kilometre or mile, with no hardware to install.

✔ Works for employees' own cars, company vehicles, or a mix of both

✔ Trips log automatically, and drivers tag each one Business or Personal

✔ Approve a month of claims in minutes, not an afternoon of spreadsheets

Run the free 60-second audit →

Not ready for a call? • No sign-up • No hardware

Employees' own cars

CRA & IRS rates built in

Company vans & pickups

Canadian company, Toronto HQ

SOUND FAMILIAR?

Mileage claims shouldn't take a
spreadsheet and a guess

When employees drive for work, someone has to collect the logs, check the kilometres,

apply the right rate and answer for it if the CRA or IRS asks. For most teams that

someone is you, and the tools are email, paper logs and trust.

Hours spent checking claims

Chasing missing logs, re-adding kilometres and fixing rates eats hours every pay

period.

Numbers you can't check

Manual logs are written after the fact. In

one industry survey, 39% of employees

admitted to padding expense claims.*

Risk you can't see

When employees drive their own cars for work, the company can share the blame

for a crash, and a flat car allowance with

no log can be taxed as income.

*Emburse Chrome River survey, as reported by TripLog. Third-party figure

HOW IT WORKS

How employee mileage reimbursement
works with Fuelshine

→

✔

→

STEP 1

STEP 2

Add your team

Drivers just drive

Invite drivers by email. Pick the CRA rate, the IRS rate or your company's own rate.

The app detects each trip in the background and records date, start and end points, and distance. Drivers tag each trip Business or Personal in one tap.

STEP 3

STEP 4

Review and approve

Pay and keep the record

See every claim with its trips, distance and amount on one screen. Approve in one click, or send it back with a comment that stays on file.

Export a reimbursement report for payroll or your accountant. Every approved trip stays in an audit-ready log.

✔ No hardware | ✔ No manual logs | ✔ CRA & IRS rates built in | ✔ Audit-ready record

See it on your own fleet ➔ Book a demo

UNDER THE HOOD

APPROVALS

TRACKING

RATES

One-click mileage approvals

Automatic trip logs, no manual entry

CRA and IRS rates built in

Every claim arrives with the trips behind it: date, route, distance, business purpose and the amount at your rate. Approve the whole claim in one click, or query a single trip. Each decision is saved with who approved it and when.

Trips are recorded by GPS as they happen, not typed in at month-end. Drivers stop reconstructing their week from memory, and you stop chasing them for logs.

Fuelshine applies the 2026 CRA rate (73¢/km for the first 5,000 km, 67¢/km after, plus 4¢ in the territories), the 2026 IRS rate (72.5¢/mile), or your own company rate. The km × rate math is shown on every claim.

✔ Who approved, and when

✔ Nothing typed at month-end

✔ 73¢/km · 72.5¢/mile · or yours

RECORDS

An audit-ready record for every claim

Each trip is logged at the time it happens with the details the CRA and IRS ask for: date, destination, business purpose and distance. Approvals, comments and each driver's signed mileage policy sit in the same file, ready if a claim is ever questioned.

✔ Ready if a claim is questioned

COMPANY VEHICLES

Verified odometer and fuel checks

Connect supported company vans and pickups through the vehicle's own factory connection, with no device to plug in. Fuelshine checks logged distance against the odometer and fuel receipts against the tank level.

See fuel receipt verification →

VISIBILITY

One dashboard for every driver and trip

See drivers, trips, claims and alerts on one screen. Spot missing trips, unusual distances or claims waiting on you, without opening a spreadsheet.

✔ Nothing lives in a spreadsheet

Everything you need to reimburse mileage with confidence

FOR YOUR DRIVERS

Built so your drivers actually
want to use it

Adoption makes or breaks a mileage program. Fuelshine gives drivers their own reasons to open the app.

Paid faster. No logbook to fill in, no claim bounced back for missing details.

They see what they're owed. Business kilometres and the dollar amount, updated after every trip.

Personal trips stay personal. Only trips marked Business go into the claim you see.

Their own tax log. The same log works at tax time if they drive for their own business too.

EcoPoints and a driving coach. Feedback on harsh braking, hard acceleration and speeding after each trip, plus points for smooth driving.

Download on the

App Store

Get it on

Google Play

See the driver app →

WHICH FLEET ARE YOU ?

For employees' own cars, company vehicles, or both

EMPLOYEES' OWN CARS

Employees drive their own cars

Pay mileage at a fair per-km or per-mile rate with a log that backs up every claim, and a signed policy on file for each driver.

COMPANY-OWNED

Company vans and pickups

Replace manual trip sheets and fuel receipt checks. On a 10-vehicle fleet, time saved on logging and review alone is worth about $11,700 a year.*

MIXED FLEET

A mix of both

One dashboard and one set of records for every vehicle, instead of a spreadsheet for each.

*Fuelshine estimate for 10 vehicles at $25/hour: admin review time cut by half ($6,500) plus driver logging time ($5,200). Fuel savings not included.

THE MATH

What it costs, and what it gives back

For a 10-driver team, before any fuel or mileage savings.

FUELSHINE

$1,800

/year

US$15 per driver per month × 10 drivers

TIME GIVEN BACK

~$11,700

/year

Admin review ($6,500) + driver logging ($5,200), our estimate at $25/hour

Book a demo →

Try it free

Get your own numbers in 60 seconds →

Not the one who signs off? Start a free trial with no cost or commitment, then share the results with whoever approves

VOICES FROM THE FIELD

Trusted by field teams in Canada and the US

Most of my mileage disputes disappeared once we rolled this out. The team's trips and costs are all visible, so approvals are quick.

“

A

Arjun

Regional Sales Manager, Axis Diagnostics

Your data stays protected. Built on SOC 2-ready infrastructure with PIPEDA-aligned datahandling.

Your data is yours. Export your trip and claim records any time.

Canadian company. Headquartered in Toronto, with an office in Michigan.

Employee mileage reimbursement: frequently asked questions

Frequently asked questions

For teams and fleet

In Canada, no general law requires it, but a reimbursement or allowance is the norm when employees use their own car for work, and a per-kilometre allowance keeps it tax-free. In the US, federal law only steps in when unpaid driving costs would push pay below minimum wage, but some states, such as California and Illinois, require employers to reimburse necessary business expenses. This isn't legal advice.

Employee mileage reimbursement for teams and fleets

Book a 30-minute demo

SOUND FAMILIAR?

Mileage claims shouldn't take a spreadsheet and a guess

HOW IT WORKS

How employee mileage reimbursement works with Fuelshine

UNDER THE HOOD

Everything you need to reimburse mileage with confidence

FOR YOUR DRIVERS

Built so your drivers actually want to use it

WHICH FLEET ARE YOU ?

For employees' own cars, company vehicles, or both

EMPLOYEES' OWN CARS

Employees drive their own cars

COMPANY-OWNED

Company vans and pickups

MIXED FLEET

A mix of both

THE MATH

What it costs, and what it gives back

FUELSHINE

TIME GIVEN BACK

VOICES FROM THE FIELD

Trusted by field teams in Canada and the US

Frequently asked questions

1. What is employee mileage reimbursement software?

2. Which mileage reimbursement software works in Canada?

3. What is the CRA mileage reimbursement rate for 2026?

4. What is the IRS mileage rate for 2026?

5. Is mileage reimbursement taxable?

Do employers have to reimburse employees for mileage?

7. How does Fuelshine help if the CRA or IRS audits our mileage?

8. Does Fuelshine work for company vehicles as well as employees' own cars?

9. Do we need to install hardware in our vehicles?

10. Will my drivers feel tracked?

11. What if a driver forgets to log trips or won't use the app?

12. Does Fuelshine check driver's licences and insurance?

13. What's the best mileage reimbursement setup for a fleet of around 30 vehicles with mixed driving?

14. How much does Fuelshine cost?

15. How long does setup take?

16. Can we export reports for payroll or our accountant?

17. Is our drivers' location data secure?

Employee mileage reimbursement for
teams and fleets

Mileage claims shouldn't take a
spreadsheet and a guess

How employee mileage reimbursement
works with Fuelshine

Built so your drivers actually
want to use it