Advisory fuel rates are HMRC's pence-per-mile figures for the fuel a company car uses, published by fuel type and engine size and reviewed four times a year. They exist for two purposes: so an employer can reimburse a company car driver for business miles without creating a taxable payment, and so a driver can repay the employer for private miles at a figure HMRC accepts, which removes the fuel benefit charge. They are not for an employee's own car, which uses the approved mileage allowance instead. This page is the current table, the rules for using it, and the calendar, with the company car mileage rates worksheet on this site applying the table to your miles.
The current table
From 1 September 2026, petrol is 14p a mile up to 1400cc, 17p from 1401cc to 2000cc and 27p over 2000cc. Diesel is 15p up to 1600cc, 16p from 1601cc to 2000cc and 22p over 2000cc. LPG is 11p, 13p and 20p across the same three petrol bands. A company electric car is 7p a mile charged at home and 15p charged in public. Hybrids are treated as petrol or diesel for their engine size.
What they may be used for
Reimbursing business miles in a company car: pay the rate or less and there is no tax, no National Insurance and nothing to report. Repaying private miles: a driver who repays all private fuel at the rate by 6 July after the tax year has no fuel benefit charge. An employer may pay more than the rate only where it can show the true fuel cost per mile was higher, with receipts and a log.
What they may not be used for
An employee's own car, which earns the approved mileage allowance for the whole cost of the car; paying a private-car driver the advisory rate underpays them and leaves a relief claim. They are also not a measure of the car's running cost or a basis for a car allowance. They are fuel, for a company car, and nothing else.
The dates
HMRC reviews the rates on 1 March, 1 June, 1 September and 1 December, and for the first month after a change an employer may use either the old or the new rate. A claim uses the rate in force on the journey date. The worksheet on this site cites the page and the date it was read, and the figures are yours to override the day a new table lands.
Questions people ask about advisory fuel rates
Do advisory fuel rates apply to vans?
They are published for cars. For a company van, HMRC accepts the rates as a reasonable figure for fuel reimbursement, and the van has its own benefit rules.
What if my car's engine size is exactly 2000cc?
It falls in the 1401cc to 2000cc band for petrol and LPG and the 1601cc to 2000cc band for diesel; the bands are inclusive at the top.
Can the employer pay less than the advisory rate?
Yes. The rate is a ceiling for tax-free payment, not an entitlement, and a company car driver paid less has no relief claim.