What does the farm fuel rebate Excel template track?

It tracks the purchase date, vehicle or equipment, farm or location, fuel type, activity type, litres, price per litre, total fuel cost, FTC rate, claimable rebate, eligibility, BAS quarter and notes.

Can I claim Fuel Tax Credits for all diesel used on a farm?

No. Eligibility depends on how and where the fuel is used. Off-road agricultural use can qualify, but fuel used by a light vehicle on public roads generally does not. Assess the actual activity before marking a row Eligible.

Does the template contain the current 2026 Fuel Tax Credit rates?

The workbook states that its FTC rates are indicative. Rates can change during the year, so confirm the applicable ATO cents-per-litre rate for the fuel type, use and purchase date before lodging your BAS.

Do I need GST registration to claim a fuel tax credit?

You generally need to be registered for GST to claim Fuel Tax Credits through your BAS. GST registration is normally required at $75,000 annual turnover, although a lower-turnover business can register voluntarily to claim eligible credits.

How long should I keep farm fuel records?

Keep fuel dockets, invoices, usage evidence, calculations and BAS records for at least 5 years in line with ATO record-keeping requirements. Save a dated copy of the workbook so you can show the rate and eligibility decision used.

How do I handle fuel used by a farm ute?

Record the ute and its activity separately from tractors and headers. A light vehicle used on public roads generally does not qualify for an FTC, so do not mark those litres eligible unless the use meets the specific ATO rules.

Accounting & GST

Farm Fuel Rebate Excel - Free Template

Track farm fuel purchases, eligible litres, FTC rates and BAS quarter totals with an Excel workbook for Australian primary producers.

2026-07-17

290 Downloads

4.8/5 Average rating

Download template

Screenshot 1: Fuel Purchases tab - Excel template farm fuel rebate excel template australia

This farm fuel rebate Excel template records fuel purchases, equipment, farm locations, activity types, litres, prices and BAS quarters, then tracks eligible fuel and the claimable Fuel Tax Credit (FTC). It includes Fuel Purchases, Rebate Summary and Instructions sheets for Australian primary producers.

Use it to keep tractor, header, truck and ute purchases together instead of hunting through fuel dockets at BAS time. Image 1 shows the main entry sheet, with yellow input cells and teal column headings; image 2 summarises the rebate, while image 3 explains how to use the workbook.

The key benefits of this Excel template

Record each fuel docket against a specific vehicle or equipment item, farm location and activity.
Separate litres purchased, price per litre and total fuel cost so you can check the numbers before claiming.
Flag whether a purchase is eligible instead of treating every diesel or petrol purchase as claimable.
Group purchases by BAS quarter to make quarterly claim preparation faster.
Calculate the claimable amount using the FTC rate entered for the relevant fuel and use.
Keep an auditable trail of dates, locations, equipment and notes for the ATO's five-year record-keeping period.
See the year-to-date rebate position on the Rebate Summary sheet without rebuilding totals in a separate workbook.

Step-by-step guide

Open the Instructions sheet first and read the notes about eligible fuel, rates and BAS reporting.
On Fuel Purchases, enter the docket date, vehicle or equipment, farm or location, fuel type and activity type.
Enter litres purchased and the price per litre. Check the total fuel cost against the supplier's docket, including whether the figure is GST-inclusive.
Enter the applicable FTC rate in cents per litre and mark the Eligible column based on the actual fuel use, not simply the vehicle type.
Select or enter the correct BAS Quarter, then add a note for unusual use, mixed private use, a public-road trip or a corrected docket.
Review the Rebate Summary sheet before lodging your BAS. Compare its totals with your fuel dockets and investigate blank, negative or unexpectedly large amounts.

Screenshot 2: Rebate Summary tab - Excel template farm fuel rebate excel template australia — Figure 2: Worksheet "Rebate Summary"

What is included

Fuel Purchases sheet with columns for Date, Vehicle/Equipment, Farm/Location, Fuel Type, Activity Type, Litres Purchased and Price per Litre.

Separate Total Fuel Cost, FTC Rate, Rebate Claimable, Eligible, BAS Quarter and Notes fields for each purchase.

Yellow input formatting distinguishes the areas where you enter docket and rate information from the formatted headings.

Teal header row, borders and wrapped headings keep all 13 purchase columns readable when printed or filtered.

Rebate Summary sheet for reviewing claimable fuel rebate totals by reporting period.

Instructions sheet with practical guidance about entering purchases and checking indicative FTC rates.

AUD labels and a 2026 workbook title, with a reminder to confirm current rates on the ATO website before lodging.

How Australian farms use this Excel template during the season

Farm owners, bookkeepers and station office managers usually update a fuel tracker when a docket arrives, not when the quarterly BAS is already due. That timing matters during seeding, spraying and harvest, when several machines may be fuelled on the same day and a single receipt can otherwise lose its connection to the job.

From fuel docket to farm activity

A cropping business near Dubbo might fill a John Deere tractor with 480 litres, then put 650 litres into a header a week later. Image 1 gives each purchase its own row and asks for the equipment, location, diesel activity and BAS quarter, so the bookkeeper can distinguish off-road agricultural use from a ute trip.

For a mixed farm, the Vehicle/Equipment and Activity Type columns are more useful than a simple monthly fuel total. A diesel purchase for a stationary pump, tractor or harvester can be assessed against its actual use, while a Toyota Hilux used on public roads is not automatically treated the same way.

Who needs the detail

A sole trader may update the file every Friday after reconciling the business bank account. A small Pty Ltd with a farm manager and an external bookkeeper can use the Notes column to explain a shared tank, a corrected docket or fuel allocated between two properties.

At quarter-end, the Rebate Summary sheet helps turn dozens of entries into a review list. If a farm bought 3,000 litres at an average $1.90 per litre, the fuel spend is $5,700; the credit is a separate calculation based on eligible litres and the correct rate, not a percentage of that spend.

When the summary earns its keep

Image 2 is most useful before the BAS is prepared and again after the claim is lodged. Image 3 provides the handover point for a new office manager, so the same entry method continues when the farm moves from winter cropping into a busy harvest period.

Screenshot 3: Instructions tab - Excel template farm fuel rebate excel template australia — Figure 3: Worksheet "Instructions"

Fuel Tax Credit rules and records for Australian farms

The ATO treats Fuel Tax Credits as a claim for eligible fuel use, not a general refund on every farm fuel purchase. You generally need to be registered for GST to claim, and you report the credit through your BAS. GST registration is normally required once business turnover reaches $75,000, but a business below that threshold may register specifically to access eligible fuel tax credits.

Eligibility depends on use

Fuel used off-road in agriculture, such as diesel burned by a tractor or header performing farm work, can qualify under the FTC rules. Fuel used by a vehicle on a public road is treated differently: a heavy vehicle may have a reduced credit after the road user charge, while an ordinary light vehicle such as a Hilux generally does not receive an FTC for public-road travel.

That is why the template includes Activity Type and Eligible rather than assuming all diesel is claimable. For example, 480 litres used by an agricultural tractor may be eligible, but 95 litres used by a light vehicle on public roads must not be included merely because the fuel was bought for the farm.

Rates and BAS reporting

FTC rates are set in cents per litre and are indexed during the year. The workbook labels its rates as indicative, so check the current ATO fuel tax credit rate for the fuel type, use and purchase date before lodging. Do not use one rate for an entire financial year when purchases cross a rate-change date.

Most small businesses lodge their BAS quarterly. Record the purchase date and BAS Quarter together, retain tax invoices and fuel records for at least 5 years as required by the ATO, and keep evidence that supports the activity and location. If the supplier invoice is over $82.50 including GST, check it contains the required tax-invoice details before relying on it for GST input tax credits; that is separate from proving FTC eligibility.

That tax-invoice check sits alongside the usual ABN invoice details you need on supplier records before claiming GST input tax credits.

The farm fuel rebate errors that create BAS trouble

The costly mistakes I see are rarely caused by adding litres incorrectly. They happen when a business claims the right amount of fuel at the wrong rate, treats a road trip as agricultural use or cannot show which machine consumed the fuel. The spreadsheet helps expose those gaps, but the docket and usage evidence still carry the claim.

Claiming the tank instead of the activity

A farm may buy 2,000 litres into one bulk tank and use it across a tractor, generator and light vehicle. Claiming all 2,000 litres as off-road agriculture can overstate the credit. If 300 litres went into the ute for public-road travel, the eligible base may be 1,700 litres before applying the appropriate rate.

At an FTC rate of 20 cents per litre, that classification error would overstate the claim by $60. The dollar amount may look small, but repeated over four quarters creates a $240 correction and leaves the bookkeeper explaining the allocation.

Using the price as the rebate rate

The FTC is not a percentage of the fuel bill. A $1,920 purchase for 1,000 litres does not produce a $192 credit just because the fuel price is $1.92 per litre. The calculation is eligible litres multiplied by the applicable cents-per-litre rate, converted to dollars.

Entering 1.92 in the FTC Rate column instead of 19.2 cents can make a claim ten times too small or too large, depending on the formula. Keep the purchase price and FTC rate in separate columns, and write the unit clearly in your internal checking notes.

Missing dates and duplicate dockets

Fuel dockets entered twice are common when a farm card feed is imported and the paper receipt is later added manually. A duplicate 650-litre header purchase at 20 cents per litre creates an extra $130 claim, while a missing date can put a legitimate transaction in the wrong BAS quarter.

Before lodging, sort by date, compare the row count with the docket bundle and scan for repeated litres, supplier details or vehicle names. Correct the source row and note the change rather than silently deleting the original evidence.

How to make the fuel tracker part of farm bookkeeping

A rebate file only works if someone opens it while the fuel information is still fresh. Set a 15-minute Friday routine: collect the week's dockets, enter each purchase, check the farm location and equipment, then put the receipts in a folder named for the BAS quarter.

Use a short checking routine

Enter purchases on the same day for harvest or spraying periods, when 10 or more dockets can accumulate quickly.
Use consistent names such as Tractor - John Deere 8R rather than three variations of the same machine.
Review the Eligible column separately from fuel type; diesel does not automatically mean claimable.
Compare litres against the tank or supplier statement and investigate a sudden 40% jump in weekly use.

Keep the workbook controlled

Save a clean master copy, then use a new file or dated copy for each financial year. Protect formula cells if you add them, use data validation for Fuel Type and BAS Quarter, and apply conditional formatting to blank dates, negative litres or missing eligibility decisions.

At BAS time, export or print the Rebate Summary and retain it with the supporting dockets. Do not overwrite an old rate when a rate changes; add the new rate to the relevant purchase rows so the calculation remains reproducible.

Know when Excel has reached its limit

This workbook is a practical fit for a sole trader or a farm with a manageable number of fuel transactions. If several staff enter fuel, multiple properties share bulk tanks, or the file has more than 10,000 rows, move the process into Xero, MYOB or another bookkeeping system with permissions and an audit trail, while keeping the spreadsheet as a review report.

Frequently asked questions about this template

It tracks the purchase date, vehicle or equipment, farm or location, fuel type, activity type, litres, price per litre, total fuel cost, FTC rate, claimable rebate, eligibility, BAS quarter and notes.
No. Eligibility depends on how and where the fuel is used. Off-road agricultural use can qualify, but fuel used by a light vehicle on public roads generally does not. Assess the actual activity before marking a row Eligible.
The workbook states that its FTC rates are indicative. Rates can change during the year, so confirm the applicable ATO cents-per-litre rate for the fuel type, use and purchase date before lodging your BAS.
You generally need to be registered for GST to claim Fuel Tax Credits through your BAS. GST registration is normally required at $75,000 annual turnover, although a lower-turnover business can register voluntarily to claim eligible credits.
Keep fuel dockets, invoices, usage evidence, calculations and BAS records for at least 5 years in line with ATO record-keeping requirements. Save a dated copy of the workbook so you can show the rate and eligibility decision used.
Record the ute and its activity separately from tractors and headers. A light vehicle used on public roads generally does not qualify for an FTC, so do not mark those litres eligible unless the use meets the specific ATO rules.