tmcmatchHMRC advisory fuel rates from 1 September 2026
Advisory fuel rates are the pence-per-mile figures HMRC publishes for fuel in company cars. They are reviewed four times a year. This page carries the rates from 1 September 2026, what moved since the last quarter, HMRC’s own rules on when you may use them, and every quarter back to September 2024 — all read from HMRC’s page and none of them retyped.
Key points
- From 1 september 2026: petrol 14p to 27p, diesel 15p to 22p, LPG 11p to 20p per mile.
- Electric: 7p home charging, 15p public charging — two separate rates.
- Company cars only. HMRC: “You must not use these rates in any other circumstances.”
- Pay no more than the rate and there is no taxable profit and no Class 1A.
- Reviewed on 1 March, 1 June, 1 September and 1 December.
Which rate applies to which car
The first question is not the rate but the regime, because two different sets of figures are both called “HMRC mileage rates”.
| Situation | Which figures | What they cover |
|---|---|---|
| Company car, business journey | Advisory fuel rates (this page) | Fuel only. The employer already bears the cost of the car. |
| Company car, private fuel repaid | Advisory fuel rates, or higher | What the employee repays so that no fuel benefit charge arises. |
| Employee’s own car or van | Approved mileage rates: 55p then 25p | Fuel and the cost of owning and running the vehicle. |
| Employee’s own electric car | Approved mileage rates, not the advisory electric rate | Ownership decides the regime, not the fuel. |
| Company electric car | Advisory electric rate: 7p home, 15p public | Electricity only. |
The statute makes the split explicit: the mileage allowance exemption in s.229 ITEPA 2003 does not apply where “the employee is a passenger in the vehicle, or (b) the vehicle is a company vehicle”. Company vehicles are simply outside it, which is why a separate set of fuel figures exists at all.
The rates from 1 September 2026
| Fuel and engine size | Rate per mile |
|---|---|
| Petrol, 1400cc or less | 14 pence |
| LPG, 1400cc or less | 11 pence |
| Petrol, 1401cc to 2000cc | 17 pence |
| LPG, 1401cc to 2000cc | 13 pence |
| Petrol, Over 2000cc | 27 pence |
| LPG, Over 2000cc | 20 pence |
| Diesel, 1600cc or less | 15 pence |
| Diesel, 1601cc to 2000cc | 16 pence |
| Diesel, Over 2000cc | 22 pence |
| Electric, home charger | 7 pence |
| Electric, public charger | 15 pence |
What moved since the previous quarter
Against the rates from 1 June 2026 to 31 August 2026:
- Petrol Over 2000cc: 26 pence → 27 pence
- Diesel 1601cc to 2000cc: 17 pence → 16 pence
- Diesel Over 2000cc: 23 pence → 22 pence
- LPG Over 2000cc: 21 pence → 20 pence
Electric rates are the same as last quarter: 7p for home charging and 15p for public charging.
When you can use them — HMRC’s own rules
Company cars only
These rates only apply to employees using a company car. You must not use these rates in any other circumstances.Read HMRC’s guidance
Reimbursing business fuel
If the mileage rate you pay is no higher than the advisory fuel rates for the engine size and fuel type of the company car, there will be no taxable profit and no Class 1A National Insurance to pay.Read HMRC’s guidance
The guidance also allows your own figures where your cars are more economical than average, or where business travel genuinely costs more than the guideline rates.
Paying more than the rate
If you pay rates that are higher than the advisory rates but cannot show that the fuel cost per mile is higher, there will be no fuel benefit charge if the mileage payments are only for business travel. Instead, you’ll have to treat any excess as taxable profit and as earnings for Class 1 National Insurance purposes.Read HMRC’s guidance
Private fuel repaid by the employee
There will be no fuel benefit charge if you correctly record all private travel mileage and use the correct rate (or higher), to work out how much your employees must repay you for fuel used for private travel.Read HMRC’s guidance
How HMRC calculates them
The advisory rate is fuel price divided by an assumed fuel economy, rounded to the penny. HMRC publishes the working. For the current quarter:
| Engine size (cc) | Mean MPG | Fuel price (per litre) | Fuel price (per gallon) | Rate per mile | Advisory fuel rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 1400 | 50.7 | 159.9 pence | 726.9 pence | 14.3 pence | 14 pence |
| 1401 to 2000 | 42.8 | 159.9 pence | 726.9 pence | 17.0 pence | 17 pence |
| Over 2000 | 27.2 | 159.9 pence | 726.9 pence | 26.8 pence | 27 pence |
| Engine size (cc) | Mean MPG | Fuel price (per litre) | Fuel price (per gallon) | Rate per mile | Advisory fuel rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 1600 | 55.7 | 179.2 pence | 814.6 pence | 14.6 pence | 15 pence |
| 1601 to 2000 | 49.6 | 179.2 pence | 814.6 pence | 16.4 pence | 16 pence |
| Over 2000 | 36.6 | 179.2 pence | 814.6 pence | 22.2 pence | 22 pence |
| Engine size (cc) | Mean MPG | Fuel price (per litre) | Fuel price (per gallon) | Rate per mile | Advisory fuel rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 1400 | 40.6 | 95.0 pence | 431.9 pence | 10.6 pence | 11 pence |
| 1401 to 2000 | 34.2 | 95.0 pence | 431.9 pence | 12.6 pence | 13 pence |
| Over 2000 | 21.7 | 95.0 pence | 431.9 pence | 19.9 pence | 20 pence |
| Charging location | Electrical efficiency miles per kilowatt-hour (weighted by car sales) | Electricity cost per kilowatt-hour | Rate per mile | Advisory electric rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home charger | 3.59 | 24.47 pence | 6.81 pence | 7 pence |
| Public charger | 3.59 | 54.00 pence | 15.02 pence | 15 pence |
Two points from HMRC’s method notes. LPG is not simply a cheaper fuel in the arithmetic: “For liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), the MPG used is 20% lower than for petrol due to lower volumetric energy density.” And the electric figures are weighted by company car sales, with a separate electricity price for public charging.
Every quarter since September 2024
Nine quarters as HMRC publishes them. Useful when a claim, an audit query or a payroll check relates to a past period, because the rate that applied is the rate for the quarter the journey was in.
| Period | Petrol ≤1400 | Petrol 1401–2000 | Petrol >2000 | Diesel ≤1600 | Diesel 1601–2000 | Diesel >2000 | LPG ≤1400 | LPG 1401–2000 | LPG >2000 | Electric |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 September 2026 | 14p | 17p | 27p | 15p | 16p | 22p | 11p | 13p | 20p | 7p / 15p |
| 1 June 2026 to 31 August 2026 | 14p | 17p | 26p | 15p | 17p | 23p | 11p | 13p | 21p | 7p / 15p |
| 1 March 2026 to 31 May 2026 | 12p | 14p | 22p | 12p | 13p | 18p | 10p | 12p | 19p | 7p / 15p |
| 1 December 2025 to 28 February 2026 | 12p | 14p | 22p | 12p | 13p | 18p | 11p | 13p | 21p | 7p / 14p |
| 1 September 2025 to 30 November 2025 | 12p | 14p | 22p | 12p | 13p | 18p | 11p | 13p | 21p | 8p / 14p |
| 1 June 2025 to 31 August 2025 | 12p | 14p | 22p | 11p | 13p | 17p | 11p | 13p | 21p | 7p |
| 1 March 2025 to 31 May 2025 | 12p | 15p | 23p | 12p | 13p | 17p | 11p | 13p | 21p | 7p |
| 1 December 2024 to 28 February 2025 | 12p | 14p | 23p | 11p | 13p | 17p | 11p | 13p | 21p | 7p |
| 1 September 2024 to 30 November 2024 | 13p | 15p | 24p | 12p | 14p | 18p | 11p | 13p | 21p | 7p |
We are paid a fixed fee per enquiry, agreed in advance, identical whichever supplier receives it. Fuel rates are here because company-car travel is business travel that rarely passes through a booking channel, and a travel programme that stops at flights and hotels has left it unmanaged.
Running a mixed fleet and a travel programme?
Describe the requirement once. It goes to no more than three suppliers, once each.
What to put in the travel policy
- Say which regime applies to which car. Company car: these rates. Own car: approved mileage rates. A single line saying “HMRC rates” is ambiguous by construction.
- Say which quarter’s rate a claim uses — the quarter of the journey.
- For electric company cars, say how home and public charging are split. HMRC gives two rates and allows apportionment.
- If you pay above the rate, keep the evidence that fuel genuinely costs more, or treat the excess as earnings.
The other clauses a policy can make enforceable are on corporate travel policy. The UK meal rates and the rules on what counts as business travel are on business travel expenses and HMRC.
This page reproduces HMRC’s published figures and describes its guidance. It is not tax advice.
Common questions
What are the HMRC advisory fuel rates from 1 September 2026?
For petrol cars: 14 pence for 1400cc or less, 17 pence for 1401cc to 2000cc and 27 pence over 2000cc. For diesel: 15 pence, 16 pence and 22 pence. For LPG: 11 pence, 13 pence and 20 pence. For fully electric cars: 7 pence per mile for home charging and 15 pence for public charging.
Who can use advisory fuel rates?
Employers with company cars. HMRC is explicit: “These rates only apply to employees using a company car.” and “You must not use these rates in any other circumstances.” They are used to reimburse business fuel in a company car, or to work out what an employee repays for private fuel.
Can I use advisory fuel rates for my own car?
No. For an employee’s own car the approved mileage rates apply instead — 55p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles from 2026–27.
How often do advisory fuel rates change?
HMRC reviews them quarterly, on 1 March, 1 June, 1 September and 1 December. The next review after this page was written is 1 December 2026.
What happens if an employer pays more than the advisory rate?
HMRC’s guidance: “If you pay rates that are higher than the advisory rates but cannot show that the fuel cost per mile is higher, there will be no fuel benefit charge if the mileage payments are only for business travel. Instead, you’ll have to treat any excess as taxable profit and as earnings for Class 1 National Insurance purposes.” An employer that can show a higher actual fuel cost per mile can use its own rate.
What is the advisory electric rate?
From 1 September 2026 HMRC gives two figures for fully electric company cars: 7 pence per mile for home charging and 15 pence per mile for public charging. Where a car is charged in both places, HMRC’s guidance allows the mileage to be apportioned.
Why is the LPG rate lower than petrol?
Mostly because of fuel price, but HMRC also adjusts the fuel economy it assumes: “For liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), the MPG used is 20% lower than for petrol due to lower volumetric energy density.”
Do advisory fuel rates avoid the fuel benefit charge?
They can, if used correctly for private fuel repayment. HMRC: “There will be no fuel benefit charge if you correctly record all private travel mileage and use the correct rate (or higher), to work out how much your employees must repay you for fuel used for private travel.”
Sources cited on this page
- HMRC — Advisory fuel rates
- HMRC — Travel: mileage and fuel rates and allowances
- Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003, s.229 — company vehicles excluded
- Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003, s.230 — approved mileage rates
Every figure above was read from the source it is attributed to on 20 September 2026. How we check this.
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