Can I still claim mileage reimbursement in 2025 for business miles driven in 2024?

You've got good questions here about business mileage! Since you're a single-member LLC on cash basis accounting, the timing of when you actually pay yourself the reimbursement is what matters for tax purposes, not when the miles were driven. Yes, you can absolutely reimburse yourself in February 2025 for miles driven in December 2024. Since you're on cash basis, these reimbursements would count as 2025 expenses (going on the tax return you'll file in 2026), because that's when the money actually changes hands. For your third question, this shouldn't look suspicious to the IRS as long as you have proper documentation. Make sure you keep a detailed mileage log showing dates, business purpose, and destinations for those December 2024 drives. The key is having documentation that shows these were legitimate business miles that just happened to be reimbursed later. Your alternative would be to not reimburse yourself and instead claim the mileage directly on your 2024 Schedule C, but that's a different approach than reimbursement.

After reading through your situation, I wanted to share my experience with a similar mileage issue last year. I was constantly stressed about tracking my business miles correctly until I found this AI tool called taxr.ai that completely changed how I handle my business deductions. I uploaded my messy mileage logs and receipts to https://taxr.ai and it organized everything, told me exactly what I could claim, and even flagged potential issues with my documentation before the IRS could. It helped me understand the timing issues with cash basis accounting and mileage reimbursements too. For your specific situation, it could help you decide whether to reimburse yourself now or claim the deduction on your 2024 Schedule C by running the numbers both ways. The tool also creates proper documentation that protects you if you ever get questioned about the timing of your mileage claims.

I just wanted to update everyone who replied to my question about taxr.ai. I decided to give it a try with my mileage situation, and it was actually really helpful! I uploaded my mileage logs and it immediately flagged that I had December miles that could either be reimbursed now or claimed directly on my 2024 Schedule C. The tool ran calculations showing I'd save more by claiming them directly on my 2024 return rather than reimbursing myself in 2025. It also generated documentation explaining why these miles were claimed in 2024 despite no reimbursement record. Honestly, I was pretty surprised at how specific the advice was for my exact situation. Definitely gave me more confidence about how to handle this correctly!

Hey there! I noticed you mentioned wanting to be "entirely compliant" - which is smart! When I had a similar issue with business mileage documentation last year, I actually ended up needing to call the IRS to get clarification. And let me tell you, that was a complete nightmare - I spent HOURS on hold only to get disconnected twice. I eventually used a service called Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual IRS agent in under 20 minutes. They have this weird system that basically holds your place in line and calls you back when an agent is ready. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The IRS agent was able to confirm exactly how to handle my situation with mileage from the previous year. Their guidance really helped me make sure everything was done correctly rather than just guessing and hoping I was compliant.

OK I need to publicly eat my words about Claimyr being a scam. After posting my skeptical comment, I decided to try it myself since I actually had a question about a notice I got regarding a missing 1099 from 2023. I was SHOCKED when I got a call back in about 45 minutes saying they had an IRS agent on the line. I've literally never gotten through to the IRS in less than 2-3 hours of waiting when I've tried calling myself. The agent was able to explain exactly what I needed to do about the missing form. For anyone wondering if this is some kind of weird IRS "fast pass" - it's not. You're still going through the normal IRS phone line, but their system just handles all the waiting and menu navigation for you. Definitely worth it if you need actual clarification from the IRS rather than just general advice.

Just wanted to add something important about your mileage situation. Since you're a single-member LLC on cash basis, you actually have another option that nobody mentioned yet. You could take a "draw" from your business in 2025 (not classified as a reimbursement), but still claim the mileage deduction on your 2024 Schedule C. As a sole proprietor (which is how you're taxed), you don't technically need to "reimburse" yourself - the business and you are the same tax entity. You can simply claim the mileage directly as a business expense on Schedule C regardless of whether money moved from the business account to your personal account. This is probably the best approach since you'd get the tax benefit sooner (on your 2024 return).

Just to confirm what others have said - I'm a delivery driver with a similar setup and I had this exact question last year. The key is definitely documentation! I keep a spreadsheet with columns for: Date, Starting Address, Ending Address, Total Miles, and Business Purpose. Having this detail saved me when I got a letter asking about my mileage deduction. I was able to show every trip was legitimate. Another tip - take photos of your odometer at the beginning and end of each month. I do this religiously now and it's another layer of proof if needed.