A valid business trip is one that both starts and ends on business.
Just because you are arriving at a business location does not make it a business trip. You also need to be starting from somewhere you do business.
A common question is whether your commute to the office is deductible. The answer is, “it depends.” The determining factor is whether you’ve started from a business location:
Do you take the home office deduction?
If so, then the trip is probably considered a business trip. Most people don’t know this, but the real advantage of a home office deduction is actually how it impacts your mileage deduction!
Did you make a business stop somewhere?
The entire distance from home to the office may not be deductible, but a portion of it could be. For example, if you stopped at the post office to get mail at your PO Box – that can usually be considered a business stop and the remainder of the trip is deductible.
The Mileage Ace system employs this rule to automatically set your trips to business or personal. You can help us detect all of your business miles by setting which hours are for business, and any business locations you drive to.
The above statements are informational only. Please consult your accountant to make the correct decision for your specific situation.