Mileage credit and reimbursement

[aaronwhoyle]

when i entered my work mileage i had a credit of around $12K.  I put in my expense reimbursement of around $10K (which should leave me with a net credit of $2K) but my income tax bill didn't change.  my business pays .44 cents per mile, which is .10 cents per mile less than i'm able to deduct.  shouldn't i receive an additional credit off my bill for the $2K difference?

[AnnetteB · Accepted solution]

Yes, you may receive a deduction (not a credit) but certain other things on your tax return can affect your expected outcome. 

As an employee, you would use Form 2106 Unreimbursed Employee Expenses to claim this difference.  However, you must also be using Schedule A and claiming itemized deductions (not the standard deduction) before it may affect the bottom line of your tax return.  This means that you could enter all the necessary information into your return to claim the mileage and your reimbursement amount, but if you are using the standard deduction then your refund/balance due would not change. 

Furthermore, even if you are using Schedule A and itemizing your deductions, the total reported on Form 2106 is further limited by 2% of your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI).  Only the portion of that category of deductions that is over and above 2% of your AGI will be deducted on Schedule A.