In short: Yes, if you use the delivery van exclusively for business purposes. Your employer then applies to the Tax and Customs Administration for a "Declaration of exclusively business use of delivery van"; after that, you do not need to keep a mileage log. If you start using the delivery van for private purposes, you must withdraw that declaration, otherwise an additional assessment and a fine will follow. If the delivery van is used for private purposes, you may, under certain conditions, suffice with a simplified mileage log.
It is no longer necessary to keep a mileage log if a delivery van is not used privately. In such cases, since 2012, a so-called “Declaration of Exclusively Business Use of a Delivery Van” can be used. This must be applied for at the Tax and Customs Administration via the employer. Once granted, the employee is no longer required to keep a mileage log.
The van is used privately after all
Additional assessment for employee or employer
If, for example, the inspector suspects, based on camera footage, that the van is being used for private purposes, they will contact the employee and employer. They will be given the opportunity to demonstrate the business nature of the trip. If they fail to do so, a supplementary assessment will be issued. If the employer made an incorrect statement in the application, gave the employee permission for private use, or is aware that the employee is using the van for private purposes, the supplementary assessment will be issued to the employer. If the employer is not at fault, the supplementary assessment will be levied on the employee.
Withdraw statement
If the employee no longer uses the car exclusively for business purposes, he must withdraw the declaration. Failure to withdraw it is a punishable offense, quite apart from the additional assessment of the addition themselves. A new reporting scheme for the employer has also been introduced in tax legislation: The employer must report to the tax authorities that the employee has incorrectly failed to withdraw the declaration if the employer knows or suspects that the employee is also using the car for private purposes. Such a suspicion may arise, for example, from traffic fines incurred outside working hours. In cases where reporting was required, failure to report results in a penalty imposed on the employer of up to 100% of the amount of wage tax subsequently assessed.
Therefore , although a trip log is not required, it is important to record the odometer reading as of January 1 and December 31 of each calendar year in connection with VAT taxation on commuting.
Withdrawal of “Declaration of exclusive business use of a van”
If the “Declaration of exclusively business use of delivery van” is withdrawn by the employee before he has used the delivery van for private purposes, it is assumed that he drove 0 kilometers privately with the delivery van during that year up to the date of withdrawal. This gives the employee the opportunity to apply to the inspector for a “ Declaration of no private use ” on that date and to keep a mileage log from that date onwards showing that the employee uses the vehicle privately for no more than 500 kilometers.
Simplified trip registration
In addition to this "Declaration of Exclusive Business Use of a Van," there's also the option of using a simplified mileage log. This can reduce the administrative burden in situations where a van is used privately. If an employee has a high daily mileage due to the nature of their work, they may, for practical reasons, provide proof using a combination of a simplified mileage log and the business addresses in their employer's records.
This is subject to the condition that the employer has agreed in writing with the employee that the employee will keep a simplified journey log, that private use during working hours and lunch hours is not permitted and that the employer keeps the business addresses in its administration.
What does a simplified trip registration look like?
In the simplified trip log, an employee does not need to report business trips because they are already included in the employer's records. The simplified trip log must include the following information per day:
- The date
- The working hours
- The starting and ending mileage (at the start and end of working hours)
- A reference to the business addresses in the employer's administration if the order in which the employee viewed these addresses is missing from that administration.
Don't want to keep track of these mileage logs manually? Then this can also be done very easily and automatically with a mileage tracking system.
If the employee makes a private journey (within the 500-kilometer limit), he or she must also enter the following information in the simplified journey log:
- The date
- The starting and ending mileage of the private trip
- The departure and arrival address.
A similar arrangement also applies to the (private) cars of driving instructors: they can simply keep track of the starting and ending positions per day.
