Enter the flat-rate travel expenses correctly in the tax return

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The travel allowance is part of the income-related expenses that an employee can declare on their income tax return and for which they do not have to pay any taxes. For the sake of simplicity, the costs are not listed individually, but are calculated based on the distance between home and place of work.

There is money from the tax office here.
There is money from the tax office here.

Employees have a legal right to the costs to deduct as income-related expenses for the trip to the workplace. This is regulated in the Income Tax Act. the ride costs are indicated in the income tax return in Appendix N and deducted from the taxable income.

The travel allowance for employees

The flat-rate travel allowance is independent of the way in which the employee drives to work, whether by bicycle, car or bus. Only trips by ferry and flights are not part of the package and must be specified separately.

  • The distance in kilometers between home and work is required for the tax return. This number of kilometers and the number of days on which the employee drove to the workplace is stated in the tax return.
  • Even if you usually drive there and back once a day, only the one-way distance is given. Likewise, the trip to work can only be billed once a day, even if you are driving home for the lunch break.
  • Basically, the shortest route should be used. A longer route will only be accepted if it is more convenient in terms of traffic, such as a bypass road that avoids the traffic jam in the center.
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  • If there is a car pool with colleagues, this must be stated on the tax return. Then each participant in the car pool can only specify the days on which he drove himself.
  • If someone else's motor vehicle is used, the travel expenses can only be deducted up to a specified maximum amount.

Special features of the package

  • When using public transport, the actual expenses should also be entered in the form in addition to the distance between home and work. These may be higher than the flat rate, that Tax office always takes the higher amount into account.
  • Flight and ferry costs to the job are not included in the flat-rate travel allowance and are entered separately in another column.
  • There are special regulations for the disabled. You can deduct the return trip to and from work at a flat rate or provide evidence of your actual costs.
  • Spouses who travel to work together can both take advantage of the flat-rate travel allowance.
  • In the case of car pooling, the routes on which passengers are picked up must not be included in the distance.
  • Anyone who drives to the train station or bus stop by car and then continues by bus or train divides the kilometers covered accordingly into the appropriate columns.

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