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EXPENCE MODULE - TRAVEL - NOT TAX (SARS) COMPLIANT

Xero Expenses currently captures the following for mileage claims: date, distance, and a description. This is wholly inadequate for South African tax compliance and exposes every South African business using Xero Expenses for travel reimbursement to material tax risk.
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) prescribes specific logbook requirements under the Income Tax Act 58 of 1962 and the Seventh Schedule thereto. A valid SARS travel logbook must record the following for every trip:

Date of travel
Start time
End time
Starting point (address or location description)
Destination (address or location description)
Purpose of the trip (business vs private)
Odometer reading at the start of the trip
Odometer reading at the end of the trip
Total kilometres travelled
Opening odometer reading for the tax year
Closing odometer reading for the tax year

Xero Expenses captures only date, distance, and a freetext description. It captures none of the mandatory location, time, or odometer data. A logbook compiled entirely from Xero Expenses records would be rejected by SARS in an audit, potentially resulting in:

Full taxation of all travel allowances and reimbursements at the taxpayer's marginal rate
Penalties and interest under Section 76 of the Income Tax Act
Personal liability for directors and employees who relied on the platform's records

This is not a fringe edge case. South Africa has approximately 500,000+ registered companies. Xero holds a significant share of the SME accounting market in South Africa. Every single one of those businesses using Xero Expenses for mileage is currently operating with a non-compliant logbook.
The SARS prescribed rate for business travel reimbursement for the 2026/2027 tax year is R4.95 per kilometre. Businesses are actively using Xero Expenses to reimburse travel at this rate. Without a compliant logbook, SARS can disallow the entire reimbursement on audit.
Relevant legal requirements and references:

Income Tax Act 58 of 1962, Seventh Schedule: https://www.sars.gov.za/legal-counsel/primary-legislation/acts/
SARS Travel Allowance and Logbook Guide: https://www.sars.gov.za/individuals/car-allowance/
SARS Official Logbook template showing required fields: https://www.sars.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/Docs/TravelLogbook2024-25.pdf
SARS Binding General Ruling 7 on travel allowances: https://www.sars.gov.za/legal-counsel/dispute-resolution/rulings/binding-general-rulings/
Tax Administration Act 28 of 2011, Section 29 (record-keeping obligations): https://www.sars.gov.za/legal-counsel/primary-legislation/acts/

Competing platforms including Dext, Expensify, and SAP Concur all support full logbook fields. Xero's current implementation is not fit for purpose in the South African market and creates direct legal exposure for Xero's customers.
The required fix is straightforward: add mandatory fields for start location, end location, start odometer, end odometer, start time, and end time to the mileage expense form, and generate a SARS-compliant logbook report that can be exported as a PDF for submission to SARS or retention for audit purposes.
This is a compliance issue, not a feature request. We urge Xero to treat it accordingly.