What goes into a Dutch mileage log?
The Dutch tax office (Belastingdienst) lists two kinds of data: the car's details once, then one line per trip. There's no prescribed format; a notebook, a spreadsheet or an app all work, as long as this data is in it.
The purpose of the trip (the client you visited, for example) isn't on the tax office's list. It's still useful: it makes your log much easier to explain during an audit.
- Car: make, model, licence plate and the period you used it.
- Per trip: the date, the odometer reading at start and end, the departure and arrival address.
- Route: only when you took a different route than usual.
- Business or private: marked per trip.
- Detour kilometres: if you made a private detour during a business trip, record those private kilometres separately.
Keep the log as you drive, not at the end of the year. A reconstruction from memory rarely matches the odometer readings.
The 500 km rule and the 2026 company car benefit
If you drive a company car, private use counts as income: the addition to taxable income known as bijtelling. In 2026 there are two rates. A zero-emission car is taxed at 18% up to a list price of €30,000 and 22% on the part above it. A fuel car is 22%. The rate that applies to your car stays fixed for 60 months.
You pay no bijtelling if you prove you drive no more than 500 private kilometres in a calendar year. A business owner proves this with a mileage log. An employee also applies for a ‘statement of no private use’ (verklaring geen privégebruik auto).
| Type of car | Rate |
|---|---|
| Zero-emission, up to €30,000 list price | 18% |
| Zero-emission, part above €30,000 | 22% |
| Fuel car | 22% |
The no-private-use statement and the van statement
With a verklaring geen privégebruik you state that you drive no more than 500 private kilometres per calendar year. Commuting counts as business: those kilometres don't count towards the 500. If you have the car for part of the year, the limit applies pro rata.
If you do drive more than 500 private kilometres, you withdraw the statement. If you don't and an audit finds it, you get an additional assessment (naheffingsaanslag). Your mileage log is exactly the evidence you'd need then.
For a van there's a separate statement of exclusively business use (verklaring uitsluitend zakelijk gebruik bestelauto). It stays valid until you withdraw it, but it isn't retroactive: it applies from the moment you request it.
Mileage allowance 2026: €0.25 tax-free
When an employee drives their own car for work, the employer may pay up to €0.25 per kilometre tax-free in 2026. In 2025 it was €0.23. The increase is retroactive to 1 January 2026: an employer that paid €0.23 since January may pay the extra €0.02 per kilometre tax-free afterwards.
The allowance may also cover commuting. Note that employees aren't automatically entitled to it. Whether you get one, and how much, depends on your employment contract, collective agreement (cao) or your employer's policy.
Self-employed and driving your own car? Also read the hours criterion: both are about what you can show the tax office afterwards.
Which record do you need in your situation?
The records you need depend on who owns the car and which arrangement you have with the tax office. The table sums it up.
| Situation | What you keep | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Own car, employer pays a mileage allowance | Overview of business (and possibly commuting) kilometres | Supports the allowance, up to €0.25 per km tax-free |
| Company car, you pay bijtelling | No full mileage log needed for the bijtelling | Private use is already taxed |
| Company car with a no-private-use statement | Full mileage log with odometer readings | Proof you drive no more than 500 km privately |
| Van with an exclusive-business-use statement | The statement; keep trips to show business use | The statement only holds for exclusively business use |
How Half5 does it
In Half5 you choose a tax regime per vehicle. The Dutch regimes are ‘Eigen auto, zakelijke kilometers vergoed’ (own car, business km reimbursed), ‘Auto van de zaak, mét bijtelling’ (company car with bijtelling), ‘Auto van de zaak, verklaring geen privégebruik’ (company car with no-private-use statement) and ‘Bestelauto, verklaring uitsluitend zakelijk gebruik’ (van, business use only). The regime decides which fields the ride form asks for; with the no-private-use statement that's a full mileage log. The iPhone and Android app sets rides ready automatically for you to review. Unconfirmed rides are visible only to you; you confirm them one by one or with ‘Bevestig week’ (confirm week), and mark each as ‘Zakelijk’ (business), ‘Privé’ (private) or ‘Woon-werk’ (commute). A private ride shows ‘Wordt niet bewaard’: it isn't stored.
‘Export rittenadministratie’ downloads a CSV for Excel or your accountant, with the columns Datum, Doel, Van, Naar, Afstand (km), Kenteken, Voertuig, Tellerstand start, Tellerstand eind, Klant, Medewerker, Compleet and Bevestigd. For employees with their own car, the ‘Kilometervergoeding voor medewerkers’ setting is ‘Geen’ (none), ‘Zakelijke kilometers’ (business km) or ‘Zakelijk + woon-werk’ (business plus commute). Rides never become invoice lines; what you charge clients for travel shows up in reports. How approval works is in Approving hours.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to record the purpose of each trip?
The Dutch tax office doesn't list the purpose as required. Each trip must be marked business or private, though, and noting the client makes that easy to back up.
Does commuting count towards the 500 private kilometres?
No. The tax office treats commuting kilometres as business kilometres, so they don't count towards the 500 km private limit.
Am I entitled to €0.25 per kilometre?
Not automatically. €0.25 is the maximum an employer may pay tax-free in 2026; whether you get an allowance depends on your contract, collective agreement or employer policy.
What happens if I drive more than 500 km privately anyway?
You have to withdraw the no-private-use statement. If an audit finds it later, the tax office issues an additional assessment.
How long does my bijtelling rate apply?
Your car's bijtelling rate stays fixed for 60 months, so rule changes during that period don't change your rate.
Sources
- Belastingdienst, Rittenregistratie (mileage log) · checked on
- Belastingdienst, Bijtelling privégebruik auto 2026 · checked on
- Belastingdienst, Verklaring geen privégebruik auto (500 private km) · checked on
- Belastingdienst, Higher tax-free mileage allowance (25 June 2026) · checked on
- Belastingdienst, Employee drives own car for your business · checked on
