Cents per km for sole traders, made simple
Log business trips on your phone and Indi calculates the indicative amount at the ATO cents per kilometre rate. No logbook, no spreadsheet, no fuel receipts.
- Free to try
- No sign-up to demo
- AUD & AU financial year
$0.91
per km, FY 2026-27
5,000
km max per vehicle, per year
$4,550
maximum claim at $0.91/km
The cents per km rate covers all running costs — fuel, servicing, depreciation, registration and insurance. Tolls and parking are separate. Indi applies the rate for whichever financial year you select.
Mileage tracking that fits sole-trader life
The cents per km method is the simplest car-expense option for sole traders. Indi makes the record-keeping just as simple.
Add your vehicle once
Give your car a nickname and pick the cents per kilometre method. That's the setup — Indi remembers the rate for the financial year you're in.
Log trips in seconds
Enter the kilometres and a short business reason — "Client site visit, 24 km". Indi stores the date, distance and purpose as a clean record.
See your indicative amount
Every trip adds to a running total at the ATO rate for the year. Watch it climb from $0 toward the 5,000 km maximum, updated as you drive.
5,000 km cap, never missed
Indi flags a heads-up as you approach 5,000 business kilometres per vehicle, so you always know where the cents per km method maxes out.
Exports to your Tax Pack
Your mileage summary — kilometres, trips, indicative amount and rate — rolls straight into the Tax Pack alongside your income and expenses.
Private, organised records
Your trips live in your own private records with optional two-factor sign-in. Indi organises the evidence you'd show a tax agent — it doesn't give tax advice.
From trip to Tax Pack in three steps
The whole flow takes less time than the drive.
Add your vehicle
Pick a nickname and the cents per kilometre method. Indi sets the ATO rate for the financial year automatically.
Log each business trip
Enter the kilometres and a short business reason. Round trips are doubled for you — just tick the box.
Export to your Tax Pack
Your total kilometres and indicative amount flow into the Tax Pack export, ready to share with your accountant.
Indi vs your spreadsheet
The mileage jobs a spreadsheet can't do for you.
Cents per km questions, answered
Everything sole traders ask about the cents per kilometre method and tracking mileage with Indi.
The cents per kilometre method lets sole traders (and some partnerships) claim a set ATO rate for each business kilometre travelled in a car they own or lease, up to 5,000 km per vehicle per year. You multiply your business kilometres by the rate to get an indicative deduction. It's the simplest of the two car-expense methods because it covers all running costs in one flat rate — no logbook, no fuel receipts to total up.
The ATO cents per kilometre rate for the 2026-27 financial year is 91 cents per kilometre ($0.91/km). For 2025-26 it was 88 cents ($0.88/km). At the 2026-27 rate, the maximum claim of 5,000 business kilometres works out to $4,550 for the year. Indi uses the rate for whichever financial year you select, so the figure updates automatically when a new rate applies.
You can claim up to 5,000 business kilometres per vehicle, per financial year. At the 2026-27 rate of 91¢/km that's a maximum of $4,550. If you drive more than 5,000 business km in a vehicle, you only claim the first 5,000 under this method — the logbook method may suit higher-mileage sole traders instead. Indi shows a gentle heads-up as you approach the 5,000 km cap so nothing gets missed.
Multiply your business kilometres by the ATO rate for the financial year. For example, 3,200 business km at $0.91/km = $2,912. The rate already includes fuel, servicing, depreciation, registration and insurance, so you don't add those separately. Indi does this calculation for you on every trip and shows the running total for the financial year.
You don't need fuel or servicing receipts for the cents per km method — the flat rate covers all running costs. You do need a reasonable record of the business kilometres you travelled, such as a diary, log or app-based trip log showing the date, distance and business reason for each trip. A simple note like "Client site visit — 24 km — 12 Aug" is enough to support your claim.
No. The cents per km rate covers running costs like fuel, servicing, depreciation, registration and insurance. Tolls and parking fees are separate expenses — you can claim them individually as business expenses with a receipt. Indi tracks your mileage total and your other expenses separately, so both show up in your Tax Pack.
No. The 12-week logbook is required for the logbook method, not the cents per km method. For cents per km you need a record of your business trips — the date, the kilometres, and the business reason — but not a formal logbook. Indi is built around exactly this: log each trip with a short purpose and the kilometres, and the indicative amount calculates itself.
Add your vehicle once, then record each business trip with the kilometres and a short business reason. Indi applies the ATO rate for the selected financial year, flags the 5,000 km cap, and rolls the total into your Tax Pack export alongside your income and expenses. It's a quick log on your phone — no spreadsheet to maintain and no logbook to keep.
Start tracking your cents per km
Try the interactive demo — add a vehicle, log a trip, and watch the indicative amount calculate at the ATO rate. No sign-up needed.
About this page. Indi helps you organise your Sole Trader records — it is not accounting software and does not give tax advice or lodge your BAS or tax return. The cents per kilometre rate and 5,000 km cap are set by the Australian Taxation Office; always confirm your claim eligibility and obligations with a registered tax agent or the ATO.