Before you start
Check out our video about what you need to know about claiming mileage as a business expense.
Getting started
You can access the mileage settings and change the default settings on the Mileage Settings page.
In the Expend web app, open the sidebar menu, go to MANAGE, click Settings, and select Mileage.
Under General, select the expense category for mileage claims. (If you want to create a new category, see Custom categories.)
Mileage policies
How it works
A mileage Policy comprises Policy Rates, which in turn contain Rules.
Policy Rates are valid for specific periods. You must specify the start date, but you can leave the end date empty so that the rate remains in place until you make changes.
A rate must contain at least one Rule, up to as many as are necessary. Here you can the rate at which claims are reimbursed for different distances, engine sizes and fuel types.
Before you start
Please note the following:
You can create multiple mileage policies, but keep in mind that users have to select the correct policy when creating a mileage claim.
After saving a mileage policy, you can’t edit or delete existing policy rates. If you want to make changes, you'll need to create a new policy (more about this below).
When a user creates a mileage claim, the appropriate rule is automatically selected. If more than one rule could apply, the first applicable rule in the list will be selected.
Important: Ensure that one of your rules has 0 in the “from” field for Mileage range and Engine range.
Adding a mileage policy
On the Mileage Settings page, in the Mileage Policies box, click + Add Policy.
Enter a name and optionally a description.
Click + Add Rate.
Enter a Valid from date and optionally a Valid to date, then click Create.
Under Policy Rates, click + Add Rule. Here you can specify different rates for different distances, engine sizes and fuel types.
Enter a Mileage range, Engine range, Fuel type, and Rate per mile or kilometre. Except for Rate, you can leave any field empty to mean “Any”. (Don't type “Any” – just leave the field empty).
Optional: Under Policy Rates, click + Add Rule to add another rule to your rate.
Optional: Click + Add Rate (upper-right corner) to add another rate to the policy. Note that the validity periods for different rates are not allowed to overlap.
Click Save and confirm.
Editing a mileage policy
You can only edit the following for an existing policy:
You can change the name and description.
You can change the date to which an existing policy rate is valid.
You can add new policy rates containing their own rules, as long as the dates of different policy rates don't overlap.
If you need to make changes to the start dates or individual rules within a policy, you either have to start over, or you can use the existing mileage policy as a template to start from.
To use an existing policy as a basis for a new one, do the following:
On the Mileage Settings page, click + Add Policy.
In the upper left corner of the page, click Duplicate From Policy.
Select the relevant policy and click Duplicate. You get a policy with the same policy rates and rules that can be edited as required.
Make the necessary changes and click Save.
Optional: On the Mileage Settings page, find the original mileage policy, click View, and then click Delete.
Initial Mileage Values
You can set the number of miles that have already been driven and claimed by a company member during the current tax year.
For instance, if you only start using Expend to track mileage expenses during the course of the current tax year, some company members may already have driven and claimed a certain number of miles (perhaps using a system other than Expend). With the Initial Mileage Values section, you can tell Expend this number, so that we can take it into account when calculating the appropriate amount for the member’s mileage claims. This will affect how amounts are calculated for mileage policies where the rate changes after a certain number of miles. For example, if you use HMRC rates, the rate will be 45p per mile for the first 10,000 miles, and 25p per mile thereafter.
If an employee hasn't driven or claimed any miles during the current tax year, you don't have to set a value for them, or you can set it to 0.
Setting the Initial Mileage Value for a member
On the Mileage Settings page, click + Set Value for Member.
Select the company member from the list.
Enter the number of miles that the member has already claimed.
Click Save.
If you think you have made a mistake with the current value, you can simply perform the same steps to change the value.
The value will always be set for the current tax year. You cannot change it for a previous tax year. Please note that, for claims that have already been approved, claim amounts will not be updated.