Knowledge Base · Free for veterans
IRS Mileage Rate 2026: Two Rates in One Year
2026 breaks the pattern: business miles pay 72.5 cents through June 30, then 76 cents from July 1 - the first mid-year increase since 2022. Your logbook needs both columns.
The facts
- 01Business: 72.5 cents/mile for January 1 - June 30, 2026 (IRS Notice 2026-10), then 76 cents/mile for July 1 - December 31, 2026 (Announcement 2026-11, citing fuel costs).
- 02Medical and moving (active-duty military): 20.5 cents/mile through June 30, 23.5 cents from July 1. Charitable: 14 cents/mile all year - fixed by statute, never adjusts.
- 03The depreciation component inside the business rate is 35 cents/mile for 2026 (up from 33 in 2025) - it reduces your vehicle's basis for later sale.
- 04The rate is OPTIONAL - you can instead deduct actual vehicle expenses, but you must use the standard rate the first year a personally-owned vehicle is in business use to keep the option open.
- 05Unreimbursed employee mileage is still NOT deductible for most W-2 workers (the OBBBA made that disallowance permanent) - the business rate belongs to self-employed Schedule C filers, reservists, fee-basis officials, and similar.
Sources
StewardWise is free for veterans and their families and always will be. Educational information only — not legal, tax, financial, or VA-benefits advice; figures verified against the cited sources for 2026.
Need hands-on help?
VES AMG builds the business side — AI operations, entity setup support, and systems for veteran-owned companies. The KB stays free either way.
More from the KB
VA Disability Pay Rates 2026
The complete 2026 monthly pay table - every rating from 10% to 100%, veteran alone, with the key add-ons.
TSP Contribution Limits 2026
The $24,500 deferral limit, the $8,000 and $11,250 catch-ups, the match, and the Roth-only catch-up rule.
Property Tax Exemptions for Disabled Veterans
Total exemptions and dollar-tiered discounts by state - with the exact Texas and Florida numbers.
VA Disability Pay Is Not Taxable Income
What tax-free really means for your AGI, your benefits eligibility, and your effective tax rate.
VA Disability COLA by Year: How the Raise Is Set
Every VA pay raise since the law tied it to Social Security - what the 2.8% 2026 COLA did to each rating, and why 90% to 100% is not a 10% raise.
VA Disability Rates 2027: When the New Table Drops and What to Expect
The 2027 VA pay table is not published yet - here is the exact calendar (CPI-W data in July, SSA announcement in October, new rates December 1) and how to read it the day it lands.
VA DIC Rates 2026: What Survivors Actually Receive
Dependency and Indemnity Compensation for surviving spouses: the $1,699.36 base rate, every add-on, and how it differs from the one-time death gratuity.
VA Aid & Attendance in 2026: The Pension Add-On That Pays for Care
Who qualifies for Aid & Attendance, the 2026 maximum pension rates with the add-on (about $2,358/mo veteran-alone), and the net-worth and look-back rules.
Medicaid Spousal Impoverishment 2026: What the At-Home Spouse Keeps
The 2026 federal numbers that decide how much of the couple's income and assets a nursing-home spouse's Medicaid case can touch: CSRA $32,532-$162,660, MMMNA $2,705-$4,066.50.
What Assisted Living Actually Costs in 2026
The national medians families pay in 2026 - assisted living $5,419/mo, memory care $6,690/mo, home care $35/hr - and the add-on fees that swing the real bill.
HSA Limits 2026: $4,400 Self / $8,750 Family - Plus the Rules That Trip People
The 2026 HSA contribution ceiling, the $1,000 age-55 catch-up, the new Bronze/Catastrophic eligibility, and the family-limit rule married couples get wrong.