New 2020 IRS Mileage Rates Now in Effect Posted by AVCU on 9:35 AM

The Internal Revenue Service issued the 2020 optional standard mileage rates on Tuesday of this week.  These are the rates taxpayers and tax professionals can use to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes.

Starting on Jan. 1, 2020, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (along with vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:

• $.57.5 cents per mile driven for business use, down half a cent from the 2019 rate;
• $.17 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes, down three cents from the 2019 rate; and
• $.14 cents per mile driven on behalf of charitable organizations.

The business mileage rate declined half a cent for business travel driven and three cents for medical and certain moving expenses from the 2019 rates. The charitable rate is set by statute and stays unchanged.

Taxpayers CAN'T:

• claim a miscellaneous itemized deduction for un-reimbursed employee travel expenses
• claim a deduction for moving expenses, except members of the Armed Forces on active duty and moving under orders to a permanent change of station.
• use the business standard mileage rate for a vehicle after using any depreciation method under the Modified Accelerated Cost Recovery System or after claiming a Section 179 deduction for that vehicle. 
• use the business standard mileage rate for more than five vehicles simultaneously

For employer-provided vehicles Notice 2020-05 describes the maximum fair market value of automobiles first made available to employees for personal use in calendar year 2020 for which employers can use the fleet-average valuation rule or the vehicle cents-per-mile valuation rule.