What it does
The IRS sets a special meal and incidental expense rate for taxpayers in the transportation industry: $80 a day for travel in the continental US and $86 outside it. Fort Route uses those rates from IRS Notice 2026-60, the 2026-2027 rates that apply to travel on or after October 1, 2026.
The rate is the easy part. The record is what takes work: which days you were away, and which ones were departure or return days. Fort Route keeps that record from GPS while the app is open, logging each day you're 50 or more miles from the home address you set.
How it works in the app
- Set your home address once. Fort Route uses it for the one-tap Home route and as the starting point for per diem.
- Keep Fort Route open on the road. Each day GPS places you 50 or more miles from home is added to the log.
- Open per diem in the Money tab when you're parked. Full days count at $80 ($86 outside the continental US), and departure and return days count at 75%.
- Mark any day by hand, such as a day the phone was off or the app was closed.
- Export the log as CSV for your tax preparer or your own records.
Here's how a week adds up. You leave Monday and get home Friday: Monday and Friday count at $60 each (75% of $80), and Tuesday through Thursday count at $80 each, for $360 in the log.
What the log doesn't decide
The 50-mile line is how Fort Route spots days away from home. It isn't an IRS test. Whether a day qualifies depends on the IRS rules for travel away from your tax home, so review the log and adjust days by hand where your situation calls for it.
Days are logged only while Fort Route is open. If the app is closed or in the background, GPS isn't read, so mark those days yourself.
When you deduct per diem, drivers subject to the Department of Transportation's hours-of-service limits can deduct 80% of meal expenses, instead of the 50% limit for most business meals. Whether you can use per diem at all depends on how you're paid, so check with a tax professional. Fort Route keeps the record; it doesn't prepare or file your return, and nothing here is tax advice.
The per diem guide for truck drivers covers the rules in more detail. Per diem sits in the Money tab next to IFTA and fuel receipts, and the load calculator helps you judge a run before it adds days to the log.
Frequently asked questions
What per diem rate does Fort Route use?
Fort Route uses the IRS transportation-industry rate of $80 a day, or $86 a day for travel outside the continental US. The rates come from IRS Notice 2026-60, effective for travel on or after October 1, 2026. The previous notice, Notice 2025-54, covered October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026, at the same rates.
Why do some days count at 75%?
Departure and return days count at 75% of the daily rate because you spend only part of those days on the road. At the $80 rate, each one is worth $60 in the log.
How much of my per diem can I deduct?
Drivers subject to DOT hours-of-service limits can deduct 80% of meal expenses, including the per diem amount, instead of the usual 50%. Whether you can claim per diem at all depends on how you're paid, so confirm with a tax professional. This is general information, not tax advice.
Does Fort Route log per diem when the app is closed?
No, days are logged from GPS only while Fort Route is open. If you miss a day, mark it by hand in the per diem log before you export.