ITR12 Travel & Vehicle Claims: Employees & Owners
Claiming travel on your ITR12: source codes 3701-3703 for employees, vehicle expenses for sole proprietors, the logbook rule, and deemed vs actual cost.
Who can claim travel on an ITR12?
It depends on how you earn. For an employee, a travel deduction generally requires a travel allowance or a reimbursive travel amount reflected on your IRP5 under source codes 3701, 3702 or 3703. If none of those codes appears on your certificate, the employee travel-allowance route is closed to you.
That is not the end of the story, though. Taxpayers who earn business income claim vehicle costs a different way, covered in the next section.
What if I am self-employed or run my own business?
If you earn business income as a sole proprietor, freelancer, consultant, contractor or commission earner, your vehicle expenses are generally claimed against that business income rather than against a travel allowance on an IRP5.
The same principles still apply. You keep a logbook, you separate business and private travel, you keep your supporting records, and you work out a business-use percentage. The difference is that the claim is made as a business expense reducing your taxable income, not as a reduction of an allowance shown on a payslip.
This is why business owners often have the most to gain from getting travel records right: the claims are larger, and the records are exactly what SARS asks to see on review.
What can a sole proprietor claim?
A sole proprietor may generally claim the business portion of vehicle costs such as:
- Fuel
- Repairs and maintenance
- Tyres
- Insurance
- Licence fees
- Interest on vehicle finance, where applicable
- Wear-and-tear allowances, where applicable
- Vehicle tracking or logbook subscriptions
These are claimable where the costs are incurred in producing your taxable income and are properly apportioned between business and private use. The business-use percentage that does the apportioning comes from your logbook, so the logbook underpins the whole claim.
What are source codes 3701, 3702 and 3703?
These are the codes your employer uses on your IRP5 to describe what you were paid for travel. They decide how SARS treats the amount.
| Code | What it is | How SARS treats it | Typical taxpayer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3701 | Fixed travel allowance | Income you can reduce with a logbook claim | Employee with a fixed allowance |
| 3702 | Taxable reimbursement | Assessed on your ITR12 | Employee reimbursed per km above the rate or with other travel pay |
| 3703 | Non-taxable reimbursement | Not taxed and not assessed | Employee reimbursed within the SARS limits |
If your only travel pay is a code 3703 reimbursement, it is already non-taxable and there is usually nothing further to claim. The deduction work happens mostly around codes 3701 and 3702.
Do you need a logbook to claim?
SARS requires a logbook to support a travel claim. Without a compliant logbook, SARS may disallow the deduction, so in practice the logbook is what makes the claim possible at all.
The logbook needs your opening odometer reading on 1 March, your closing reading at the end of February, and the date, distance, destination, and business reason for every business trip. The full detail is in SARS travel logbook requirements.
Deemed cost or actual cost: which method?
Once you have a logbook, an employee with a travel allowance values the claim one of two ways. Both use the same business-use percentage from the logbook. The difference is what else you have to keep.
| Method | What you keep | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Deemed cost (SARS table) | The logbook only | Most people, simplest to defend |
| Actual cost | The logbook plus every fuel, repair, service, licence, insurance, and finance slip | Vehicles with high running costs |
The deemed cost method uses the SARS rate per kilometre table for the tax year, set out in SARS rate per km 2026/2027. The actual cost method can produce a larger claim where your real running costs are high, whether from fuel, maintenance, finance charges or heavy business use, but only if you have kept every slip.
How do you enter the claim on eFiling?
On your ITR12, a travel allowance from code 3701 is already pulled through from your IRP5. You add the travel deduction section, enter your vehicle details, your opening and closing odometer readings, your total and business kilometres, and either your actual costs or a deemed cost calculation. eFiling then works out the deductible portion. If you claim vehicle costs as a sole proprietor, those go in the local business income section of the return instead. Keep your logbook and slips for five years in case SARS asks to see them.
What is the most common reason a travel claim is rejected?
A missing or incomplete logbook. Travel claims are commonly disallowed where there is no opening and closing odometer reading, or where business trips are not recorded with a destination and purpose. A logbook reconstructed at filing time is the weakest position to be in, and SARS may reject it, so record trips as they happen.
Frequently asked questions
Can I claim travel on my ITR12 if I am self-employed?
Yes. If you earn business income as a sole proprietor, freelancer, consultant, contractor or commission earner, you claim the business portion of your vehicle costs against that income, apportioned by the business-use percentage from your logbook. You do not need a travel allowance on an IRP5 to do this.
Can an employee claim travel without a travel allowance?
Generally no. For employees, a travel deduction needs a travel allowance or reimbursive travel reflected on the IRP5 under codes 3701, 3702 or 3703. Without one of those, the employee travel-allowance route is closed, though business income earners claim a different way.
What is the difference between code 3701 and 3702?
Code 3701 is a fixed travel allowance. Code 3702 is a per-kilometre reimbursement that is taxable, usually because it is above the prescribed rate or paid alongside other travel pay. Both can support a travel claim on your ITR12 with a logbook.
How long must I keep my logbook and slips?
Keep your logbook and supporting slips for five years from the date you file. SARS can ask for them during that period, and a claim you cannot support can be reversed.
Can I reconstruct a logbook at the end of the year?
It is far weaker than a contemporaneous record and SARS may reject it. Record each business trip when it happens, with the date, distance, destination, and reason, so the logbook holds up under review. --- Whether you claim against a travel allowance or as a business expense, the logbook is what stands between you and the deduction. Expenstry records trips and odometer readings as you drive and exports a SARS-ready logbook at filing time. See Expenstry pricing, from R59 a month. This article is general information, not tax advice. Confirm the current rules for your situation at sars.gov.za.