Guide
Swiss Mileage Rate 2026: CHF 0.75 per km (Kilometeransatz)
General information, not tax advice. Federal and cantonal rules differ — always check the current figures on estv.admin.ch, your cantonal tax administration, or a qualified tax advisor before you file.
For 2026, the Swiss federal per-kilometre rate for using a private car for work — the Kilometeransatz (also Kilometerentschädigung, or indemnité kilométrique in French) — is CHF 0.75 per kilometre. That is a rise from CHF 0.70/km, which applied through 31 December 2025. The increase came in as a practice change (Praxisänderung) by the Federal Tax Administration (ESTV/AFC), effective 1 January 2026.
The Swiss federal rate is a single flat rate: there is no tiered structure and no per-year kilometre band. You simply multiply your deductible work kilometres by the applicable CHF-per-km figure.
The rate at a glance
| Period | Rate |
|---|---|
| From 1 January 2026 | CHF 0.75 / km |
| Until 31 December 2025 | CHF 0.70 / km |
The legal basis is the Federal Department of Finance's ordinance on professional expenses — the Berufskostenverordnung des EFD, SR 642.118.1.
A worked example
You drove 2,000 deductible work kilometres in 2026: 2,000 × CHF 0.75 = CHF 1,500 deductible. The flat rate is meant to cover your running costs, so you don't itemise fuel, servicing or wear separately.
Watch the cantonal rates and the commuting cap
Two nuances catch people out. First, the CHF 0.75/km figure is the federal direct tax rate — the cantons levy their own income taxes and can set a different per-kilometre rate for cantonal and communal purposes. Check your canton's own schedule; it will not always match the federal number.
Second, for commuting — the ordinary trip between home and your regular workplace — federal income tax caps the total deduction at roughly CHF 3,200 per year. That is an absolute ceiling on the commute deduction, entirely separate from the per-km rate: once your computed commuting deduction exceeds it, the extra is lost. Genuine business trips (client visits, travel between sites) are treated as professional expenses and are not subject to that same commuting ceiling.
You must be able to show your work kilometres
Whatever rate applies, the tax authority expects you to be able to substantiate the kilometres you claim — a credible, dated record of your actual work trips, not a round-number estimate. A guessed total does not survive a review; a log of real trips with dates and distances does.
That record probably already exists: if you use Google Maps, your Timeline has captured every drive with GPS timestamps and distances. To turn it into a tidy record:
- Export your Timeline from your phone (see our Timeline export guide).
- Open the file in Time-mile — processed entirely in your browser, your location history never touches a server.
- Filter to the tax year and your work trips by date and activity type.
- Export a CSV to total your work kilometres, or a PDF report as your supporting record.
Back your car expense claim with real GPS data
Import your Google Timeline once, export a clean, dated record in minutes.
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