GPS Telematics Fuel Tax Credits Reporting

Fuel tax credits are credits for the fuel tax (excise or customs duty) that's included in the price of fuel. Most businesses are entitled to fuel tax credits for fuel used in a range of business activities, excluding the use of light vehicles on public roads. The rate of credit varies according to the use to which the fuel is put.

Fuel tax credits provide businesses with a credit for the fuel tax (excise or customs duty) that's included in the price of fuel used in:

• Machinery
• Plant
• Equipment
• Heavy vehicles
• Light vehicles travelling off public roads or on private roads.

The amount depends on when you acquire the fuel, what fuel you use and the activity you use it in. Fuel tax credits rates also change regularly so it's important to check the rates each time you do your business activity statement (BAS).

Some fuels and activities are not eligible including fuel you use in light vehicles of 4.5 tonnes gross vehicle mass (GVM) or less, travelling on public roads.

Detailed official information is available directly from The Australian Taxation Office Fuel Tax Credits Website.

The simplest method to make Fuel Tax Credits reporting easier to manage ,is to utilise GPS Telematics Devices to monitor actual distance travelled as well as fuel used on and off public roads.
This involves the installation of a reputable and accurate GPS Tracking/Telematics device which gathers vehicle location & fuel usage via interface to the vehicle's engine management system on a second by second basis and transmits this information using the mobile phone networks to a central server.

The central server will provide a web based app where you enter specific data relevant to each vehicle such as:

• Vehicle Make, Model, Year, Rego, Gross vehicle mass (GVM)
• Fuel type
• Main engine capacity
• Main fuel tank/s capacity
• Auxiliary engine fuel type, fuel burn rate, fuel type

The web app will then use GPS tracking/telematics location data as well as fuel consumption data to calculate claimable fuel tax credits based on travel and related fuel consumption on and off public roads.

As a result many companies are turning to GPS tracking devices, apps and other forms of telematics to keep track of Fuel Tax Credits.

GPS trackers, (also referred to as Telematics Devices, AVL - Automatic Vehicle Locators, IVMS - In vehicle Monitoring Systems,
are devices that are fitted to company cars, truck, plant & equipment. They receive signals from GPS Satellites orbiting the earth. The GPS information is stored within the GPS Tracker and immediately sent to an IntelliTrac server in the cloud using wireless internet over the mobile phone 3G or 4G networks.

The GPS data is processed at the server and displayed on your Office PC Internet Browser or Smartphone/Tablet app as:

• Vehicle icons moving along on a map
• Easy to read dashboards of trending data
• Vehicle Movements Activity Reporting
• Compliance Reporting & Substantiation such as Fuel Tax Credits