Financial Forum Q&A
Travel expenses: what to claim for and how it’s taxed
All those kilometres you drive in your privately owned car need to be reimbursed
Question: I freelance for a small beauty business where I travel long distances to clients at venues in my own car (sometimes a 600km round trip). How should my employer reimburse me for the distance travelled? Should it be Automobile Association (AA) rates or the SA Revenue Service (Sars) rate of R3.61 per km? I also do not know how she calculates the travel costs when quoting clients. Should it be from my home or from the business premises? — Angie, via e-mail Answer by Rob Cooper, tax expert at Sage: Without more information about what you mean by the term “freelance”, I am assuming you are an employee and not an independent contractor. As an employee, you are required to provide the beauty salon’s services for clients who can’t or don’t want to come to the company’s premises. Your employer compensates you for business travel in a privately owned vehicle. What really matters is how your employer administers your travel reimbursement in the payroll, calculates and withholds PAY...
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