Fact Check: Mileage & Expense Reimbursement Laws by State (2026)

"29 CFR §531.35 — Wages under the FLSA must be paid 'finally and unconditionally' or 'free and clear'; minimum-wage and overtime requirements are violated whenever the employee 'kicks back' any part of the wage to the employer if doing so cuts into the FLSA minimum."

"29 CFR §531.32 — Items 'primarily for the benefit or convenience of the employer' are not facilities and cannot be charged against the minimum wage; board, lodging, and meals at company restaurants CAN be charged under FLSA §3(m)."

"California Labor Code §2802(a) verbatim text: 'An employer shall indemnify his or her employee for all necessary expenditures or losses incurred by the employee in direct consequence of the discharge of his or her duties...'"

"California §2802(b) — Awards carry 10%/year interest under CCP §685.010, accruing from the date the expense was incurred."

"California §2802(c) — Attorney's fees included as 'necessary expenditures or losses.'"

"Statute of limitations for §2802: 3 years under CCP §338(a); 4 years under Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code §17208 when repackaged as a UCL claim."

"Illinois 820 ILCS 115/9.5 — effective January 1, 2019; requires reimbursement of 'all necessary expenditures or losses' that inure to the employer's primary benefit; 30-day submission window."

"Massachusetts — 454 CMR 27.04(4) transportation reimbursement for off-site/intra-day travel; Wage Act (MGL c.149 §148) provides treble damages + attorney's fees."

"Montana — MCA §39-2-701 indemnification language textually parallel to California §2802(a) (Field Code lineage)."

"North Dakota — NDCC §34-02-01 indemnification language textually parallel to California §2802(a)."

"South Dakota — SDCL §60-2-1 indemnification language textually parallel to California §2802(a)."

"New Hampshire RSA 275:57 — reimbursement within 30 days of proof of payment; willful violation carries up to $1,000 civil penalty per violation plus interest."

"Iowa Code §91A.3(6) — authorized expenses reimbursed within 30 days; timing rule, not duty-creating."

"Minnesota Minn. Stat. §177.24 — narrow minimum-wage floor protection for uniforms/equipment; $50 deduction cap; full refund at termination."

"New York NY Labor Law §198-c — 'wage supplements' include expense reimbursement IF AGREED; exempts executive/admin/professional employees earning over $1,300/week."

"DC — 7 DCMR §910 (Tools) requires employer to pay cost of purchasing and maintaining tools; 7 DCMR §908 (Uniforms) requires employer to pay purchase/maintenance/cleaning of required uniforms with hourly-stipend in-lieu alternatives."

"Seattle SMC 14.20 (Wage Theft Ordinance) — effective April 1, 2015; defines 'compensation owed' to include reimbursable expenses; treble damages for willful violations."

"Seattle SMC 14.34 (Independent Contractor Protections Ordinance) — effective September 1, 2022; requires pre-contract expense-reimbursement disclosure and itemized payment statements."

"26 CFR §1.62-2 — accountable plans require business connection, substantiation within ~60 days, return of excess within ~120 days."

"26 CFR §1.274-5 — Each business-trip mileage entry requires amount, time/place, business purpose."

"26 USC §170(i) — Charitable mileage rate fixed by statute at 14¢/mile; has not changed since 1998."

"IRC §67(g) — OBBBA (2025) made the TCJA suspension of miscellaneous itemized deductions permanent, effective January 1, 2026, with narrow educator-expense carve-out."

"OBBBA §70113(b) — extended moving-rate scope to intelligence-community personnel (in addition to active-duty military) for moves after Dec 31, 2025."

"California Labor Code §1174 — payroll records duty cross-referenced for §2802 audits."

"California Labor Code §2775 (codifying ABC test from AB 5) — independent contractor classification under the ABC test framework."

"California Bus. & Prof. Code §7451 (Proposition 22, 2020) — app-based rideshare/delivery drivers owed a Healthcare Subsidy and a mileage reimbursement of $0.30/mile (inflation-adjusted) for engaged miles."

"49 CFR §395.8 — DOT hours-of-service logs can double as §1.274-5 mileage substantiation when properly maintained."

"Rev. Rul. 99-7 — Travel from home to a temporary work location outside the metro area is deductible business mileage; 'temporary' means realistically expected to last one year or less."

"DOL Field Operations Handbook Chapter 31 — inter-client travel between visits is compensable working time under FLSA for non-exempt healthcare staff."

"Pennsylvania fringe-benefit rule: under WPCL (43 P.S. §260.1 et seq.) unreimbursed expense paid within 60 days of claim, only when employer has agreed to reimburse."

"Gattuso v. Harte-Hanks Shoppers, Inc., 42 Cal.4th 554 (Cal. 2007) — §2802 satisfied by actual-expense, mileage, or lump-sum method; IRS rate is 'presumptively reasonable but rebuttable.'"

"Cochran v. Schwan's Home Service, Inc., 228 Cal.App.4th 1137 (Cal. Ct. App. 2014) — required cell-phone use triggers 'reasonable percentage' reimbursement regardless of plan type or marginal cost."

"Thai v. International Business Machines Corp., 93 Cal.App.5th 364 (Cal. Ct. App. 2023) — COVID stay-home order does not break §2802; remote-work expenses reimbursable."

"Williams v. Amazon.com Services LLC, No. 3:22-cv-01892 (N.D. Cal.) — $950K class settlement, final approval January 23, 2024, for unreimbursed home-internet during COVID."

"Commissioner v. Flowers, 326 U.S. 465 (1946) — commuting between home and regular workplace is personal expense, not deductible / reimbursable."

"2026 IRS standard business mileage rate: 72.5¢/mile (Notice 2026-10, IR-2025-128, Dec 29, 2025)."

"2026 IRS medical and active-duty military moving mileage rate: 20.5¢/mile."

"2025 IRS business mileage rate: 70¢/mile (Notice 2025-5)."

"2024 IRS business mileage rate: 67¢/mile (Notice 2024-08)."

"2026 FAVR maximum standard automobile cost: $61,700 (Notice 2026-10)."

"$7.25/hr federal minimum wage."

"Transportation industry per-diem rate (Notice 2024-68, FY2024–25): $80/day within CONUS, $86/day OCONUS; 80% MIE deduction under IRC §274(n)(3)."

"AAA 2025 weighted-average new-vehicle cost: $11,577/year, equating to 77.18¢/mile across 5-year / 15,000-mile/year ownership horizon, 9 vehicle categories, 45 models."

"Illinois §9.5 enforcement ramped up materially through 2024–2025, with much of the activity targeting remote-work expenses for Illinois employees of out-of-state employers."

"Thai v. IBM appellate decision: July 11, 2023."