The Mileage Log

Keeping track of the driving you do for your business can lower the tax you pay, and helps you understand your business. The mileage log under Trackers → Mileage keeps it the way the CRA wants it. Here are some examples of driving you should log:

• sourcing trips
• post office runs
• supply store visits
• meeting a buyer

The mileage log is part of the Starter, Growth and Pro plans.

Why the percentage

Canadian sole proprietors don't deduct kilometres times a rate. They deduct their real car costs, times the share of the year's driving that was for the business. Those costs include:

• gas
• insurance
• repairs
• lease payments, or depreciation

The log backs up that share. The per-kilometre figure RelistKit also shows, labelled CRA allowance value, is what an employer would pay staff back at. It's there for comparison, and it may apply if your business is a corporation. Your accountant can tell you which applies to you.

1. Add a trip

1. Click Trackers in the top menu, then the Mileage tab.
2. In Add a business trip, under Enter the trip distance as, choose Distance or Odometer readings.
3. Enter the date, and where you went. Your recent destinations are one click away, under the form.
4. Choose the Purpose: Sourcing, Shipping / post office, Supplies, Buyer meetup or Other. For Other, say what the trip was for.
5. Enter the distance. For Distance, enter the kilometres one way, and leave Round trip ticked to double it. For Odometer readings, enter the readings at the start and end of the trip, and RelistKit works out the difference.
6. Click Add trip.

2. Enter the year's total

The summary tiles need one more number: the total kilometres the car drove this year, business and personal.

1. Under the tiles, click Enter total km for this year.
2. Under How you know it, choose Total for the year and type it, or choose Odometer readings and enter the readings at the start and end of the year. An estimate is fine until the year ends.
3. Click Save.

The Business use tile now shows the percentage: your business kilometres as a share of all your driving.

3. Export the log

Click CSV or Excel at the top of the page, then give the file to your accountant. It covers the year chosen beside the page's heading, with one row per trip and these columns:

• Date
• Destination
• Purpose
• Km
• Round trip
• Note

To fix a trip, click the pencil on its row. To delete it, click the bin.

Common questions

Do I need to log every trip?

Yes, for the CRA. Once you've logged a full year, the CRA lets you keep a three-month sample logbook in later years, as long as your business use stays within 10% of that year. RelistKit tells you when you have a full year logged.

What counts as a business trip?

Driving whose purpose is the business. For example:

• to a thrift store to source
• to the post office to ship
• to a store to buy supplies
• to meet a buyer

The commute to a day job doesn't count.

I don't know the year's total yet.

Enter an estimate, and update it after December 31. Or enter your odometer readings at the start and end of the year.

I drive for another business too.

Log only your reselling trips here, and keep the other log separately. The total kilometres figure is for the whole car.

Can I log trips on the Free plan?

The mileage log comes with Starter, Growth and Pro. If you change plans, trips you've already logged stay saved, and come back when you're on a plan that includes it.