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IFTA mileage and fuel log
The individual vehicle record that supports a quarterly return: distance by jurisdiction tied to odometer readings, and the fuel purchases behind every credit you claim.
The return is the summary, this is the evidence
An IFTA audit does not start with the return. It starts with the record behind it: where each trip ran, how far it ran in each jurisdiction, what the odometer said at both ends, and a receipt for every tax-paid gallon or litre claimed as a credit. Fleets that lose an audit rarely lose it on arithmetic. They lose it because the distance cannot be tied to a trip, or a receipt is missing the seller or the fuel type, and a disallowed receipt becomes distance taxed twice.
How long to keep it
Four years from the date each quarterly return was due or was filed, whichever is later. That applies to the distance records and the fuel records alike, so a sheet filled in today may be asked for in 2030. Keep them where they can be found by unit and by quarter rather than in a glovebox.
Four things that decide an audit
Record odometer readings at the start and the end of each trip. A trip-meter total cannot be checked against anything; a pair of odometer readings can.
Record distance in the jurisdiction where it was run, not where the load was going. A load from Montreal to Ohio runs distance in Quebec, Ontario, Michigan and Ohio, and each of those is its own line.
Keep the receipt, not just the amount. A fuel receipt that does not name the seller, the date, the fuel type and the quantity may be disallowed, and the credit goes with it.
Fill it in the same day. A sheet reconstructed at quarter end from memory is the one that does not survive questions, and it is also the one that takes longest to produce.
Or let the tracking do it
This sheet exists because paper still has to work when a device does not. A GPS record of distance by jurisdiction, trip by trip, kept for the full four years, is what turns an audit from a search into a report, and it does not depend on a driver writing down an odometer reading at the end of a long day.
Questions about IFTA records
- Do I need this if my trucks are tracked?
- Usually not for the distance half. A tracking system that records distance by jurisdiction per trip and keeps it for four years produces the same record automatically. Paper is the fallback for an untracked unit, a device failure, or a vehicle that has just joined the fleet.
- What makes a fuel receipt acceptable?
- It should identify the seller, the date, the fuel type, the quantity and the price or total, and tie to the vehicle. A receipt missing one of those may be disallowed, which removes the credit and leaves the distance taxable. Keep the original rather than a summary from a fuel card.
- How long do I keep the records?
- Four years from the date the quarterly return was due or filed, whichever is later. Distance records and fuel records both. Your base jurisdiction may ask for more, so check its instructions rather than assuming four years is the ceiling.
- Does bulk fuel count?
- It can, but it is recorded differently: withdrawals from your own bulk tank need their own record showing the date, quantity, unit and the tank it came from, plus purchase records for the tank itself. Check your base jurisdiction's instructions before claiming bulk fuel as tax paid.
- Can I keep this electronically?
- Yes, and most jurisdictions prefer it. What matters is that the record is complete, readable and tied to a vehicle and a trip, not what it is stored on. A spreadsheet of this sheet's columns is as acceptable as the paper, provided it is kept for the full period.