FBT car calculator

Enter the car's cost price, the date the employer first held it, the days it was available for private use and any employee contribution. The calculator returns the taxable value under the statutory formula, the grossed-up amount and the FBT payable. A second panel checks the electric car exemption conditions.

What it calculates

Taxable value = (A × B × C ÷ D) − E, using the formula on the ATO's taxable value page:

• A, base value: the cost price including GST, luxury car tax, dealer delivery and fitted non-business accessories, excluding registration and stamp duty. If the start of the FBT year is later than the fourth anniversary of the date the employer first held the car, the calculator multiplies the cost price by two-thirds, as section 9(2) of the FBTAA 1986 requires.
• B: 20%.
• C: days in the FBT year the car was used or available for private use.
• D: days in the FBT year, worked out from the year you choose.
• E: employee contributions. The taxable value does not go below zero.

It then grosses up at the type 1 rate (2.0802) where the employer can claim GST credits on the car, or the type 2 rate (1.8868) where it cannot, and applies the 47% FBT rate. These rates apply for FBT years ending 31 March 2026 and 31 March 2027 (ATO). It also shows the reportable amount at the type 2 rate, which applies even when the car is exempt.

Worked example

The ATO's 2025 FBT return instructions use a car with base value $32,000, first available on 1 July 2024 (274 of 365 days), and no contributions: $32,000 × 20% × 274 ÷ 365 = $4,804.

Electric car exemption checker

The checker asks about the four conditions on the ATO's electric cars exemption page: vehicle type, first held and used on or after 1 July 2022, provided to a current employee or associate, and luxury car tax never payable. For plug-in hybrids it applies the ATO's transitional rule: exempt private use before 1 April 2025 under a financially binding commitment made before that date, with no later change.

The checker does not decide cases that turn on facts it cannot test. It will say so, and point to the ATO page, where:

• you are not sure whether luxury car tax was ever payable, including any second-hand car;
• a plug-in hybrid's lease, novation or payments have changed in any way since 1 April 2025, or the employee changed employer;
• the vehicle's design capacity (load or passengers) is unclear;
• the dates the car was first held and first used are not known.

What it does not do

• It does not calculate the operating cost method. Use a logbook and the method in the FBT guide.
• It does not handle cars under commitments made before the old statutory rates were replaced, leased car base values, or not-for-profit rebates and exemptions.
• It does not test the ute and work vehicle exemption, which depends on how the vehicle is used.
• Results are rounded to cents. The taxable value is also shown in whole dollars, as the ATO's return uses.

Questions

What is the statutory formula for car fringe benefits?

Taxable value equals base value × 20% × days available for private use ÷ days in the FBT year, less employee contributions.

When is the base value reduced by one-third?

Under section 9(2) of the FBTAA 1986, the cost price is multiplied by two-thirds once the FBT year starts after the fourth anniversary of the date the employer first held the car.

Should I use the type 1 or type 2 gross-up rate?

Use type 1 (2.0802) where the employer can claim GST credits for the benefit and type 2 (1.8868) where it cannot. Reportable amounts always use type 2.

Why won't the checker decide my plug-in hybrid case?

From 1 April 2025 the exemption for a plug-in hybrid depends on the exact terms of a pre-existing financially binding commitment and whether anything has changed, which needs a review of the documents.

Sources

• Taxable value of a car fringe benefit (ATO)
• Cars and FBT, print section (ATO)
• Fringe Benefits Tax Assessment Act 1986, compilation No. 97 of 1 July 2026 (Federal Register of Legislation)
• Fringe benefits tax rates and thresholds (ATO)
• Calculating your FBT (ATO)
• Car fringe benefits tax guide for small business (ATO, NAT 55922)
• Fringe benefits tax return 2025 instructions, print section (ATO)
• Electric cars exemption (ATO)
• FBT on plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (ATO)
• Luxury car tax rate and thresholds (ATO)
• Reportable fringe benefits (ATO)