General scope and annual choice
The five-page FAQ allows PHC car expenses from YA 2019 and explains stakeholder input and regular review of the 60% ratio. Full-time, part-time and casual drivers may use it. If switching taxi to PHC during a year, apply the SAME actual-expense or 60% option to all driving income; choice can change in another YA.
Other trades and partnerships
PHC car costs are deductible only against driving income, not commission income; qualifying agents may use actual commission expenses or 25% where commission≤S$50,000. Partnerships/businesses providing ride-hailing and rental services are not individual drivers eligible for 60%; claim their actual wholly/exclusively incurred costs with records.
How to claim
Prefilled operator driving income attracts automatic 60%. If not prefilled, select TAXI / PRIVATE HIRE CAR DRIVER as nature of business in trade income. Paper filers compute 60% and complete two-/four-line statements themselves. Actual allowable expenses above 60% can be chosen by amending the return; do not add them on top of the ratio.
All actual-cost categories
Booking service fees, PDVL/TDVL renewals, business phone data, rental, fuel, road tax, car insurance, washing, parking, car-loan interest, repairs and maintenance may qualify. Disallowed examples are start-up capital expenditure, first vocational licence/training, private-car purchase including COE, personal insurance, medical check-ups and parking fines. Apportion mixed use, for example by mileage.
Capital allowances and the taxi exception
No capital allowance on a PHC’s purchase price. The narrow taxi exception requires replacing, or subsequently replacing, a taxi acquired before 1 January 1975 AND holding the taxi vocational licence. Owning any ordinary taxi does not alone establish this exception.
Changing a filed option: document and current cross-check
This PDF prints one re-file within7days or by18April, earlier; otherwise Object to Assessment within30days of bill. It still requires payment viaGIRO or withinone month, with credit refund within30days of amended bill. The current general IRAS page instead says re-file once by18April and uses Amend Tax Bill within30days. Consult the applicable current service rather than silently mixing versions: https://www.iras.gov.sg/taxes/individual-income-tax/basics-of-individual-income-tax/understanding-my-income-tax-filing/making-changes-after-filing-receiving-tax-bill .
Losses restricted to the driving trade
Private weekday trips cannot create an allowable loss to offset other income. A genuine loss from solely income-producing driving expenses can carry back/forward against driving income of that same trade, but cannot offset other income in the same or future YAs under this FAQ. The source distinguishes improper private expenses from genuine trade loss.
Records under either method
Actual-expense FAQ 15 says total driving income LESS THAN S$200,000 in the past two FYs for simplified records. Ratio FAQ 16 says gross revenue S$200,000 OR LESS in both FYs plus other qualification. This boundary inconsistency is in the PDF; check current simplified-record guidance if exactly 200,000. Qualifying drivers keep listings without receipts; others keep daily records, receipts and operator statements for at leastfive years from the relatedYA.60% does not eliminate recordkeeping.
Official source
This article independently explains the substantive contents of the official PDF, including the relevant conditions, procedures and annexes. The linked document remains the authoritative source for its original wording, and later changes should be checked separately.
Read the official PDF ↗