What Is the Mileage Federal Tax Deduction for Work Expenses?

Deductible Mileage

You cannot write off the cost of commuting from your home to your job. However, if you drive your own vehicle as part of your job or drive between multiple jobs, you can write off the miles that you drive as an employee work expense as long as your employer does not reimburse you for the miles. For example, if you work for both company A and company B and you have to drive from A to B, you can include those miles in the deduction.

The IRS usually sets the business mileage rate at the start of every year and keeps the same rate for 12 months. However, if the price of gas increases drastically, the IRS will occasionally make an exception and change the mileage rate halfway through the year. For example, during the first six months of 2011, the rate equaled 51 cents per mile but for the last six months the rate increased to 55.5 cents per mile.

Since the IRS classifies the work-related mileage deduction, you can only deduct the amount by which your deduction exceeds 2 percent of your adjusted gross income. If you only have mileage to deduct as unreimbursed mileage expense, you may not qualify for a deduction. However, if you have several miscellaneous deductions, your mileage can increase the deduction. For example, if your AGI equals $46,000, you would have to have $920 in miscellaneous expenses, including mileage, before you could start claiming a deduction.

When you file your income taxes, you have to itemize your income tax deductions to claim your work-related mileage. Itemizing forces you to give up your standard deduction, so it is only worthwhile if your total itemized deductions exceeds your standard deduction. On Schedule A, report the sum of your work-related mileage on line 21 along with any other unreimbursed employee expenses. Once you combine your mileage deduction with any other miscellaneous deductions, subtract 2 percent of your AGI and report the total value of your deduction on line 27.