HMRC have confirmed an increase in EV mileage rates for public charging

HMRC have confirmed an increase in EV mileage rates for public charging

HMRC have recognised the price discrepancy between charging a car at home or on the street and has split fuel advisory rates for electric cars depending on where drivers charge their company cars.

From 1 September 2025, the universal advisory electric rate for company car drivers is changing, with the single rate for fully electric cars being abolished and replaced with two different rates reflecting where a vehicle is charged.

The new rate will be 8 pence per mile for home charging, and 14 pence per mile for public charging. This will replace the current universal rate of 7p per mile.

The rates will be reviewed quarterly in line with petrol and diesel advisory fuel rates, but only for chargers rated at less than 50 kilowatts (kW) per hour!

Concerns have been expressed particularly in that the ‘Domestic electricity cost per kilowatt-hour’ for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero publish figures annually, using the latest estimate of electricity prices from the Office for National Statistics.

HMRC stated: ‘A higher amount than the advisory rates can be used as long as you can show that the fuel cost per mile is higher. Therefore, if the public charger used is higher in cost per mile than the new advisory rate introduced for public charging, a higher rate can be used as long as you can show the cost per mile is higher.’

‘These rates only apply to employees using a company car. They can be used to reimburse employees for business travel in their company cars, and when employees need to repay the cost of fuel used for private travel. These rates must not be used in any other circumstances’ HMRC stressed.