How to Claim Mileage as a Self-Employed Musician in the UK
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Last reviewed: February 2026
Last year I drove to 52 gigs across Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Lincolnshire. When I sat down to do my tax return, I had no idea how many miles that actually was — or how much I could claim back. Turns out, claiming mileage as a musician in the UK is one of the simplest ways to reduce your tax bill, and most of us are leaving hundreds of pounds on the table.
Every generic mileage guide out there talks about "business trips" and "client meetings." None of them address what gigging actually looks like: a different venue every week, sometimes two in a day, with rehearsals and equipment pickups thrown in between. This guide covers exactly what counts, what doesn't, and how to stop guessing.
What counts as business mileage for musicians?
If you're self-employed and use your own car to get to gigs, HMRC lets you claim for business mileage. The good news is that most of your driving probably qualifies.
Venue travel is the big one. Every drive from your home to a gig and back again counts as business mileage. Unlike employees who commute to the same office every day, performers travel to temporary workplaces — a different pub, hotel, or function room each time. HMRC defines a temporary workplace as somewhere you attend for less than 24 months, and unless you're a house band, you're almost certainly covered.
That means the 45-mile round trip to a wedding at a country house in the Wolds? Claimable. The drive across to Manchester for a corporate event? Claimable. The nip to a local pub five minutes down the road? Also claimable.
One caveat worth knowing: if you expect to attend the same venue for more than 24 months and spend 40% or more of your working time there, HMRC may treat it as a permanent workplace — making that travel ordinary commuting rather than business mileage. For most gigging musicians, this won’t apply. But if you’re a house band or you’ve had a long-running residency, it’s worth being aware of.
Rehearsal travel counts too, as long as the rehearsal is for a specific gig or project. If you're driving to a band rehearsal room to prepare for a wedding set or a function booking, that mileage qualifies. The same applies to driving to collect or return equipment — picking up a PA system from a bandmate's garage or dropping off a mic stand you borrowed.
Agency meetings are covered as well. If you drive to an agency office to sign up, discuss bookings, or attend an audition they've arranged, those miles are business mileage.
What doesn't count is trickier for musicians than most self-employed people, because we rarely have a "regular workplace." But if you do have a permanent base — say you teach at a music school three days a week — the daily drive to that school is commuting, not business mileage. The drive from that school to a gig in the evening, though, would count.
HMRC mileage rates for 2025/26
HMRC's approved mileage rates for the 2025/26 tax year (6 April 2025 to 5 April 2026) are:
45p per mile for the first 10,000 business miles
25p per mile for every mile after that
These rates cover everything: fuel, insurance, wear and tear, servicing, even depreciation. You don't need to keep fuel receipts or work out your actual running costs — just multiply your miles by the rate.
The rates apply to cars and vans. If you use a motorcycle, the rate is 24p per mile with no 10,000-mile threshold. Bicycles get 20p per mile, though I've yet to meet a singer who cycles to a gig with a PA in tow.
Worked example: Let's say you do 50 gigs a year and the average round trip is 60 miles. That's 3,000 business miles.
3,000 miles × 45p = £1,350 mileage allowance
That £1,350 comes straight off your taxable profit. If you're a basic rate taxpayer (20%), that's £270 back in your pocket. If you're in the higher band, it's £540. For something that takes minutes to track properly, that's not bad.
And that's just a moderate example. Plenty of performers I know cover 5,000–8,000 business miles a year. At 6,000 miles, you'd be claiming £2,700 — a genuine dent in your tax bill.
If you also carry another performer to gigs (maybe your duet partner or a bandmate), you can claim an extra 5p per mile per passenger for business journeys.
How to track your mileage properly
HMRC doesn't ask you to submit your mileage log with your tax return, but they absolutely expect you to have one if they ever come knocking. For each business journey, you need to record:
The date of the trip
The destination (venue name and location)
The miles driven (round trip)
The purpose of the journey (gig, rehearsal, equipment collection)
That's it. Four things per trip. But here's the problem — most musicians don't track any of it during the year and then try to reconstruct everything from memory at tax time. Some guess a rough number. Some don't claim at all.
A survey by IPSE found that a significant proportion of self-employed workers under-claim on their expenses. For performers doing 40–60 gigs a year, even being 20% off on your mileage estimate means leaving £200–£500 unclaimed.
The spreadsheet method works if you're disciplined about it. Set up a Google Sheet with columns for date, venue, miles, and purpose. After every gig, add a row. It takes 30 seconds. The trouble is, most of us don't do it when we get home at midnight after loading out a PA.
Automatic tracking is the other option, and it's getting easier. Some apps use GPS to log your journeys. Others calculate the distance based on your home postcode and the venue address.
Gigflow takes a slightly different approach — when you add a gig, it uses Google Places to find the venue and automatically calculates the round-trip mileage from your home at the current HMRC rate. You don't need to remember to start tracking or type in postcodes after the fact. It's one option worth looking at if you want mileage handled alongside your gig tracking, though a well-maintained spreadsheet will do the job too.
Whatever method you choose, the important thing is consistency. Pick one system and stick with it all year. Reconstructing your mileage in January from hazy memories and Facebook posts is a recipe for under-claiming or, worse, over-claiming.
How to claim mileage on your tax return
When you fill in your Self Assessment, your mileage allowance goes under "Car, van and travel expenses" in the self-employment section. If you're using the simplified expenses method (which most sole traders do for mileage), you just enter the total amount — your miles multiplied by the HMRC rate.
You have two options for vehicle expenses, and you need to understand them before you claim:
Simplified expenses (flat rate) — This is where you use the 45p/25p per mile rates. You don't track actual vehicle costs. You just record your business miles and multiply by the rate. It's straightforward and works well for most performers. However, once you choose this method for a vehicle, you're locked in — you can't switch to actual costs for that same car later.
Actual costs — Instead of the flat rate, you calculate the total cost of running your vehicle (fuel, insurance, servicing, MOT, repairs, depreciation) and then claim the business-use percentage. If 60% of your annual mileage is for gigs, you claim 60% of your total running costs. This method is more paperwork-heavy and requires keeping every receipt, but it can sometimes work out higher, particularly if you have an expensive vehicle or very high running costs.
For most gigging musicians doing under 10,000 business miles a year in a normal car, simplified expenses is the easier and often more generous route. If you're unsure, HMRC has a simplified expenses checker that lets you compare both methods.
If your total self-employment income is under £85,000, you can use the simplified version of the tax return, which makes the whole process quicker. Either way, keep your mileage log for at least five years after the submission deadline — HMRC can ask to see it.
Common mistakes musicians make with mileage
Not claiming at all. This is the most expensive mistake. If you think "my accountant handles it" but you've never given them a mileage log, you're probably not claiming. Some performers assume their accountant will somehow know how far they drove. They won't — you have to track it and hand it over.
Guessing a round number. Estimating "about 2,000 miles" instead of tracking properly usually means under-claiming. It also leaves you exposed if HMRC enquires and you can't produce a log. A reasonable estimate is better than nothing, but proper records are better than both.
Forgetting non-gig mileage. Rehearsals, equipment pickups, trips to buy strings or stage clothes, agency meetings, sound checks at new venues — these all count. Most performers only think about the gig itself and miss the trips around it.
Mixing up simplified and actual costs. If you've been claiming actual vehicle expenses or capital allowances through your business accounts, you can't switch to the 45p flat rate for that same car. The lock-in is about consistency in your own records, not something you formally declare to HMRC. If you start using a new vehicle for business, you get to make the choice again — because you haven't claimed any costs against it yet.
Not claiming passenger mileage. If you regularly drive another performer to gigs — your duo partner, a backing musician — you can claim an additional 5p per mile for each passenger. One important detail: this only applies if the passenger is also travelling for business purposes. It doesn’t cover a partner or friend coming along for the ride. Over a year of shared drives with a fellow performer, though, that 5p adds up.
Only tracking one-way distance. HMRC mileage is the full round trip. Home to venue and back. If you look up the distance to a venue on Google Maps and only record the one-way number, you're claiming half what you're entitled to.
Making Tax Digital
One more reason to get your mileage records in order: from April 2026, Making Tax Digital for Income Tax will require many self-employed people to keep digital records and submit quarterly updates to HMRC. Paper logs and end-of-year spreadsheets won't cut it under MTD. The threshold starts at £50,000 from April 2026, drops to £30,000 in April 2027, and falls again to £20,000 in April 2028 — bringing the majority of working performers into scope. Digital mileage tracking isn't just convenient under MTD, it'll be the expectation.
FAQ
Can I claim mileage from home to a gig venue?
Yes. Because gig venues are temporary workplaces (you're not attending the same one every day for months), the drive from your home to the venue and back counts as business mileage — as long as you're registered as self-employed in the first place. This is different from employees who commute to a fixed office, which doesn't qualify.
What records do I need to keep for HMRC?
For each business journey, record the date, the destination (venue name and address), the total miles driven (round trip), and the purpose of the trip (gig, rehearsal, equipment collection). Keep these records for at least five years after the Self Assessment submission deadline. HMRC doesn't ask to see them upfront, but they can request them during an enquiry.
Can I claim mileage if I use an electric vehicle?
Yes. Electric vehicles qualify for the same HMRC mileage rates as petrol and diesel cars — 45p per mile for the first 10,000 miles, 25p thereafter. Because the actual running cost of an EV is typically lower than a petrol car, the flat-rate allowance is often particularly generous for electric vehicle owners.
Can I claim mileage for rehearsals?
Yes, as long as the rehearsal is for a specific gig or project. Driving to a band rehearsal room to prepare for a wedding booking or a function set counts as business mileage. The same goes for driving to collect or return equipment. What doesn't qualify is a general practice session with no direct connection to a paid booking — but for most working performers, the majority of rehearsal travel will have a gig behind it.
Does it matter if I'm booked through an agency rather than directly?
No. How you were booked doesn't affect your mileage claim. Whether a client found you through an agency, a wedding directory, or word of mouth, the travel to the venue and back is still business mileage. What matters is that you're self-employed and the journey is wholly for business purposes — not who arranged the gig. If you drive to an agency office to sign up, discuss bookings, or attend an audition they've arranged, those miles are business mileage — and while you're there, make sure you're invoicing them correctly too.
What's the difference between simplified expenses and actual costs for vehicles?
Simplified expenses use HMRC's flat rate (45p/25p per mile) and don't require you to track running costs. Actual costs involve calculating total vehicle expenses and claiming the business-use percentage. Simplified expenses are easier and suit most performers, but once you choose this method for a vehicle, you can't switch to actual costs for that same car. If you're unsure which is better, HMRC's simplified expenses checker can help you compare.
Do I have to use a mileage tracking app?
No. HMRC doesn't specify how you record your mileage — a notebook, spreadsheet, or app all work as long as the information is accurate and complete. The advantage of digital tracking is consistency and accuracy, especially if you're doing 40+ gigs a year and won't realistically update a paper log at midnight after every show. If you want mileage handled automatically alongside your gig tracking, Gigflow calculates round-trip mileage for every gig you add — no postcodes, no manual entries.
Still tracking mileage on the back of setlists?
Try Gigflow free — mileage calculated automatically for every gig.
Tax rules depend on individual circumstances. If you work regularly at the same venue or you’re unsure how HMRC would treat your travel, it’s worth speaking to an accountant.
