To claim a business mileage deduction, do I need to have kept a mileage log of my work miles, or can I just estimate the annual miles?

levons777 · ‎June 3, 2019

Opus 17 · ‎June 3, 2019

If you are audited, the IRS does not have to give you any deduction you can't prove. The written instructions in publication 463 require a diary or log of some kind that includes the date, mileage, and business purpose of the trip, that is contemporaneous—kept at or near the time of the business trip. The farther away from the trip, the more the IRS is likely to question the accuracy of your recollections. When you sit with an auditor in 2021, going over your 2018 tax return, how will you convince them that your estimate is fair and accurate?

*Answers are correct to the best of my ability at the time of posting but do not constitute legal or tax advice.*

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xmasbaby0 · ‎June 3, 2019

Are you a W-2 employee or are you self-employed?

**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**

levons777 · ‎June 3, 2019

Thanks, that is what I thought.

xmasbaby0 · ‎June 3, 2019

**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**

Opus 17 · ‎June 3, 2019

If you are audited, the IRS does not have to give you any deduction you can't prove. The written instructions in publication 463 require a diary or log of some kind that includes the date, mileage, and business purpose of the trip, that is contemporaneous—kept at or near the time of the business trip. The farther away from the trip, the more the IRS is likely to question the accuracy of your recollections. When you sit with an auditor in 2021, going over your 2018 tax return, how will you convince them that your estimate is fair and accurate?

*Answers are correct to the best of my ability at the time of posting but do not constitute legal or tax advice.*

To claim a business mileage deduction, do I need to have kept a mileage log of my work miles, or can I just estimate the annual miles?