What happened
IRS Notice 2026-60 sets the special transportation-industry meals and incidental expenses rate at $80 per day for travel within the continental United States and $86 for travel outside it. The notice applies to qualifying expenses paid or incurred on or after Oct. 1, 2026. The separate high-low substantiation method rises to $329 for designated high-cost localities and $230 for other CONUS localities; of those amounts, $86 and $74 respectively are treated as meals.
What drivers should do
Per diem is a record-substantiation method, not a promise that every driver receives $80 in cash or an automatic tax deduction. Eligibility and tax treatment depend on whether the driver is self-employed or a W-2 employee, whether the trip is away from the driver’s tax home long enough to require sleep or rest, and whether an employer uses an accountable reimbursement plan. Company-paid per diem can also change the taxable-wage and benefit picture, so compare the full settlement or pay statement rather than only the advertised daily amount.
Why this matters to our community
Owner-operators should preserve ELD logs, trip sheets, dispatch records and dates and locations of overnight travel, then reconcile them with bookkeeping before filing. Company drivers should ask payroll for the written per-diem policy, daily rate, partial-day rule, taxable and non-taxable treatment, and how the program affects gross wages, overtime, Social Security earnings and benefit calculations. Small carriers should update payroll or reimbursement systems for the Oct. 1 effective date and keep the IRS notice with the policy. Use a qualified tax professional for individual eligibility. Useful English terms include meals and incidental expenses, CONUS, OCONUS, tax home, accountable plan, substantiation, high-cost locality and high-low method.