volunteer expenses
volunteer retention
Some of Felix's volunteers thought we had made a mistake.
They had been reimbursed more than they expected for their mileage, they are used to being paid 45p per mile. and they got in touch with us to check. Was the system paying them too much?
No. Felix had updated their mileage rate to 55p.
Felix volunteers were paid the new 55p per mile for their mileage expense claims not long after HMRC had updated the rate.
Ten pence rise per mile is a small amount but it's clear that the volunteers immediately felt it. The first assumption is an error but we were able to deliver good news: their charity acted fast on the new HMRC rate and put the mileage rate up.
What is the new HMRC volunteer mileage rate for charities in 2026?
Up to 55p per mile for cars and vans, for the first 10,000 miles in a tax year.
HMRC raised the approved mileage rate from 45p to 55p per mile. The increase was announced on 21 May 2026 and backdated to 6 April 2026, and it is the first rise in 15 years. Charities can now reimburse volunteer drivers up to 55p per mile with no tax implications for the volunteer.
We have written a full guide to what changed and what charities should do about it: HMRC Volunteer Mileage Rate 2026.
How does vHelp calculate mileage payments?
The volunteer enters the miles they have driven. The system applies the rate the charity has set and calculates the payment automatically.
The charity sets the mileage rate once, centrally. Volunteers do not need to know the rate, work out the maths, or fill in a formula. They enter their miles, submit the claim, and the money reaches their bank account once the claim is approved.
So when Felix changed one number, every volunteer driver across every site was reimbursed correctly from that moment on. No claim forms to reissue. No spreadsheets with 45p buried in a cell. No volunteer left on the old rate because a message never reached them.
For a charity with volunteers spread across multiple sites, that difference is the whole point. Updating a rate should take minutes, not a quarter.
Felix has always been ahead of the sector on paying volunteer expenses
Felix were early adopters of vHelp, and they helped shape features that every charity on the platform now uses. Their volunteers were being reimbursed within days at a time when much of the sector was taking weeks to make a bank transfer or hand over petty cash on site, which still goes on today.
Felix recognise that volunteer expenses are not an administrative afterthought but a factor in whether people can afford to volunteer at all. The speed of the 55p decision reflects that.
What should charities do about the new HMRC approved mileage rate of 55p?
The rate went up in May and backdated to April. Charities that have not moved are now asking volunteer drivers to absorb a cost that HMRC has formally recognised they should not have to.
Three things to do:
- Update what you pay to 55p per mile.
- Tell your volunteers, in your newsletter, by email, and at team meetings.
- Consider topping up claims already made at 45p since 6 April, which the backdating allows.
this new approved rate is HMRC's tax-free mileage allowance, the amount a volunteer can be reimbursed without it counting as income. Paying above this threshold may results in tax and National Insurance implications for the volunteer. Paying below it, as many charities still do at 45p, and volunteers are left out of pocket.
If you are updating your mileage rate this year, it is a good moment to look at how you reimburse volunteers altogether.
Contact us for a quick demo of vHelp hello@vhelp.co.uk
ding part of their own petrol from taxed income. Getting the rate right matters as much as raising it.
