ULEZ and Congestion Charge for EVs: 2026 London Guide
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The Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) covers all London boroughs and charges non-compliant vehicles £12.50 a day, but fully electric cars are exempt. The congestion charge for electric cars works differently: since 2 January 2026, drivers pay £18 a day in central London, or £13.50 for electric cars registered on TfL's Auto Pay.
TfL and the Greater London Authority's One Year Report found nearly 100,000 fewer non-compliant vehicles on an average London day in September 2024 than in June 2023, a fall of 58%. EV salary sacrifice schemes, like The Electric Car Scheme, are designed to encourage more people to drive sustainably. Electric car salary sacrifice typically saves employees 20-50% compared to a personal lease, because the cost is paid from their salary before tax.
This guide covers what the ULEZ is, how to check whether your car is compliant, and what electric car drivers now pay in the Congestion Charge zone, including how to register for the discount and what it costs over a year.
What Is ULEZ?
ULEZ was introduced in April 2019. It applied to vehicles that did not meet specific criteria when entering or driving around the London Congestion Charge Zone. This covered the city and some of the central London boroughs. It expanded for the first time in October 2021 to cover the area up to, but not including, the North and South Circular roads, before eventually expanding to all London boroughs on 29 August 2023. The London Congestion Charge Zone is now marked by Red Circles with a ‘C’ at the beginning of every road to alert you that you are entering the zone. ULEZ operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and every day of the year except Christmas Day.
If your vehicle doesn’t meet ULEZ emission standards, you will need to pay a £12.50 daily charge to drive within the zone. Charging runs from midnight to midnight, and if you drive within the ULEZ area across two days, you will need to pay for two daily charges. The combination of the ULEZ charge and the Congestion Charge could add up to £30.50 (the £12.50 ULEZ charge plus the £18 Congestion Charge) if you drive a non-compliant vehicle in the Congestion Charge zone on a weekday between 7 am and 6 pm.
This applies to cars, motorbikes, vans and specialist vehicles (up to and including 3.5 tonnes) and minibuses (up to and including 5 tonnes). Lorries, vans and specialist heavy vehicles (over 3.5 tonnes) will need to pay the LEZ charge, not the ULEZ charge, if they do not meet the Low Emission Zone emission standard. Fully electric cars are exempt from the ULEZ charge, one of several benefits of electric cars.
What’s The Difference Between ULEZ AND Congestion Charges?
The Congestion Charge covers central London, whereas ULEZ covers all London Boroughs. All vehicles, including electric cars, pay the Congestion Charge when driving in the Congestion Charge Zone during charging hours, in addition to the ULEZ charge for non-compliant vehicles. The table below compares the two schemes using 2026 rates.
| Feature | Congestion Charge | ULEZ |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Reduce traffic and congestion in central London | Improve air quality by reducing emissions from older vehicles |
| Coverage | Central London only | All London boroughs |
| Operating hours | Monday to Friday 7am to 6pm; Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays 12pm to 6pm; no charge from Christmas Day to the New Year's Day bank holiday | 24 hours a day, every day except Christmas Day |
| Standard daily charge | £18 (£21 if paid by midnight on the third day after travel) | £12.50 for vehicles that don't meet ULEZ standards |
| Cost for a fully electric car | £13.50 on Auto Pay; £18 if not on Auto Pay | £0 |
| Cost for a ULEZ-compliant petrol or diesel car | £18 | £0 |
| Electric car exemption | Ended 25 December 2025. 25% discount on Auto Pay until 4 March 2030, then 12.5% | Fully electric cars remain exempt |
Why Did Electric Cars Lose The Congestion Charge Exemption?
The Cleaner Vehicle Discount was always intended to be temporary. The Mayoral decision that set up the current version in 2019 built in an end date of 25 December 2025, and TfL says the number of electric vehicles registered for the discount grew from around 20,000 in 2019 to more than 116,000 in 2025. Without a change, TfL estimated that more than 2,000 additional vehicles a day would drive in the zone. For drivers, the practical effect is that electric car running costs in central London now include a daily charge, which the sections below put into numbers.
Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London, said that keeping London moving by reducing congestion is "vital for our city and for our economy" when the changes were confirmed in November 2025. TfL's director of strategy, Christina Calderato, described the new tiered discount as a balance between traffic management and continued support for drivers moving to cleaner vehicles. That balance explains why electric cars still pay less than petrol and diesel cars, but no longer pay nothing.
What Is The Difference Between LEZ AND ULEZ?
LEZ stands for Low Emission Zone, and ULEZ stands for Ultra-low Emission Zone.
LEZ targets heavy goods vehicles like lorries, vans and coaches. It operates 24 hours a day, every day of the year apart from Christmas (the same as ULEZ).
ULEZ is for petrol and diesel cars that do not meet Euro 4 (vehicles registered from 2006) and Euro 6 (vehicles registered from September 2016) vehicle standards.
Heavier vehicles pay the LEZ charge instead of the ULEZ charge. That covers lorries, vans and specialist vehicles over 3.5 tonnes, and buses, minibuses and coaches over 5 tonnes. The charge is £100 a day if the vehicle meets Euro IV or V but not Euro VI, and £300 a day if it doesn't meet Euro IV. Smaller vans and minibuses that don't meet the Euro 3 particulate standard pay a £100 LEZ charge on top of any ULEZ charge.
Why Do We Need Policies Like ULEZ?
Poor air quality impacts the health of individuals living in cities, including cancer, asthma, lung disease and even some links to dementia.
Air pollution still carries a measurable health cost in London. Imperial College London estimates that long-term exposure contributed to between 3,800 and 5,100 premature deaths in London in 2024, down from an estimated 6,400 to 8,000 in 2019 on the same updated method. The study looks at every factor affecting air quality, so it doesn't measure the ULEZ's contribution on its own.
How Do I Know If My Car Is ULEZ-Compliant?
You can check whether your car is up to ULEZ standards on the Transport for London website.
Enter your registration, and it will tell you whether you are subject to the charge if you were to enter either the ULEZ or Congestion Charge Zone.
Different standards are required for different cars, but here are the basics:
ULEZ-Compliant Petrol Cars
Must meet Euro 4, Euro 5 or Euro 6 emissions standards
Generally registered after January 2006
ULEZ-Compliant Diesel Cars
Must be Euro 6 compliant
Generally registered after September 2015
ULEZ-Compliant Hybrid And Electric Cars
With a diesel engine: must meet Euro 6 standards
With a petrol engine: must meet Euro 4 standards
There are exemptions to the Congestion Charges. Motorcycles and Blue Badge holders are also not required to pay for the charge. Residents in the zone can apply for a 90% discount, which brings the daily charge down to £1.80. From 1 March 2027, new applicants will need to drive an electric vehicle to qualify, although low-income and disabled residents receiving certain benefits can still apply without one until March 2030
What Should You Do If Your Car Isn’t ULEZ-Compliant?
If your vehicle isn’t compliant and you don’t want to pay the charge every time you enter an Ultra Low Emission Zone, you do have some options. The most obvious is switching to an electric car, which produces no tailpipe emissions and through salary sacrifice schemes, this can be made more affordable for everyone. The Electric Car Scheme offers a choice of used electric cars with verified battery health, which typically means a lower P11D value and a lower monthly cost compared with a new car.
Occasional visitors have another option. The ULEZ charge is £12.50 only on the days you drive a non-compliant vehicle in London, which TfL and the GLA say is designed to give infrequent drivers an alternative to replacing their car. For regular drivers, the charges add up quickly, because driving into London 240 days a year in a non-compliant car would cost £3,000 in ULEZ charges alone.
The Mayor of London's scrappage scheme has now closed. It closed to new applications on 8 September 2024, and City Hall says it removed more than 53,000 older, more polluting vehicles from London's roads. Drivers with a non-compliant car now need to replace it, pay the daily charge or change how they travel.
What About Electric Cars, ULEZ, And The Congestion Charge?
All electric cars remain exempt from the ULEZ charge, but they no longer drive free through the Congestion Charge zone. The 100% Cleaner Vehicle Discount ended on 25 December 2025. Since 2 January 2026, unless they qualify for another discount or exemption, all vehicle owners, including electric car owners, pay the Congestion Charge during charging hours. The 2026 changes apply to the Congestion Charge only, so electric cars don’t have to pay a ULEZ charge, and comparing the two schemes helps when you're working out what a London commute will cost with an electric car.
What Is The Cleaner Vehicle Discount?
Electric and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles were exempt from the London Congestion Charge under the Cleaner Vehicle Discount. That 100% discount ended on 25 December 2025.
From 2 January 2026, TfL replaced it with a tiered discount for vehicles registered on Auto Pay:
Electric cars: 25% off the £18 daily charge, which is £13.50 a day.
Electric vans, HGVs and quadricycles: 50% off, which is £9 a day.
From 4 March 2030: the discount for electric cars falls to 12.5% (£15.75 a day at the current £18 charge), and the discount for electric vans, HGVs and quadricycles falls to 25% (£13.50 a day).
Only fully electric cars qualify for the 25% discount, so plug-in hybrids pay the full £18. The discount also depends on registration: an electric car that isn't on Auto Pay when it enters the zone pays the full £18.
The new discount doesn't need a separate application or an annual fee. RAC Drive reports, citing TfL, that drivers no longer need to supply documents to prove eligibility, and the discount is applied automatically to electric cars registered on Auto Pay.
How Do I Pay For ULEZ And Congestion Charges?
You pay via the Transport for London website. If you drive within the zone, you can pay the ULEZ daily charge of £12.50 by midnight on the third day after your journey or up to 90 days in advance. The Congestion Charge is £18 if you pay in advance or on the day, and £21 if you pay by midnight on the third day after travel. Paying after the day of travel costs an extra £3, so it's worth paying on the day or setting up Auto Pay if you drive in London regularly.
You ca n set up Auto Pay if you regularly drive within these zones. Auto Pay will bill you every month for any Congestion Charges or ULEZ charges you owe. For electric cars, Auto Pay is also how you get the 25% Congestion Charge discount, so it matters for every electric car driver who enters the zone, not only regular ones. Registration is free, and it removes the risk of a Penalty Charge Notice if you forget to pay.
How Do I Register for the Electric Vehicle Discount?
Registering takes a few minutes and needs to happen before you drive into the zone.
Sign in to your London Road User Charging account on the TfL website, or create one.
Add your electric car's registration number under Manage Auto Pay.
Add a debit or credit card, or bank account details, for payments.
Check the vehicle appears in your Auto Pay account and keep it there while you drive the car in the zone.
TfL applies the 25% discount automatically once the car is registered, and you'll pay the full £18 if the car isn't on Auto Pay when it enters the zone. If your car comes through electric car salary sacrifice, add it to your account once it's delivered and remove it when the lease ends, so charges don't continue on a car you no longer drive.
Penalty Charges For ULEZ
If your car is not ULEZ-compliant and you drive within the Ultra Low Emission Zone and also do not pay the correct daily charge, you will be issued with a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN). Both UK and non-UK-registered vehicles can get PCNs. The charging hours for ULEZ are from midnight to midnight, so you may get separate PCNs for each charging day that you have driven within the ULEZ. An unpaid Congestion Charge leads to the same £180 penalty, reduced to £90 if paid within 14 days, and that applies to electric cars as well as petrol and diesel cars.
You can view and pay a PCN online through TfL. Or, you can download the TFL Pay to Drive in London App and press ‘Pay Penalty.’ This is only the case for London, but the process remains the same across the rest of the country.
The table below shows the Penalty Charge Notices for different vehicles and how much the charge will be if paid within 14 days.
| Vehicle type | Weight | Penalty charge | If paid within 14 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cars, vans, motorcycles, motor tricycles and mopeds | Up to and including 3.5 tonnes gross vehicle weight | £180 | £90 |
| Motor caravans and ambulances | 2.5-3.5 tonnes gross vehicle weight | £180 | £90 |
| Minibuses (with more than 8 passenger seats) | 5 tonnes or less gross vehicle weight | £180 | £90 |
How Much Will The Congestion Charge Cost Electric Car Drivers Each Year?
The Congestion Charge only applies on the days you drive into the zone, so your annual cost depends on how often you go. The figures below use TfL's published £13.50 rate for electric cars on Auto Pay, the £18 standard rate, and £30.50 for a non-compliant petrol or diesel car that also pays the £12.50 ULEZ charge. They assume the charge applies on each day shown and make no other allowance for holidays.
| Usage pattern | Charging days a year | Electric car on Auto Pay (£13.50 a day) | ULEZ-compliant petrol or diesel car (£18 a day) | Non-compliant petrol or diesel car (£30.50 a day) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daily commuter | 240 | £3,240 | £4,320 | £7,320 |
| Part-time (10 days a month) | 120 | £1,620 | £2,160 | £3,660 |
| Weekly visitor | 48 | £648 | £864 | £1,464 |
Registering on Auto Pay saves a daily commuter an estimated £1,080 a year compared with the standard charge, and a weekly visitor around £216. A petrol or diesel car that meets ULEZ standards pays the same £18 as an electric car that isn't on Auto Pay, so the £30.50 column only applies to the small share of vehicles that don't meet the standards. City Hall says over 97% of vehicles driven in London now do. That makes Auto Pay registration the one step that separates an electric car from the standard rate. Running costs like home charging sit on top of the daily charge, so the totals above are only part of the picture.
The gap narrows from 4 March 2030, when the discount falls to 12.5%. At today's £18 base charge, the same daily commuter would pay an estimated £3,780 a year. TfL can also make routine annual increases to the charge without a public consultation, although any increase still needs a decision by TfL and the Mayor, so treat these figures as estimates. Employees typically save 20-50% compared to a personal lease through electric car salary sacrifice, which can help offset part of the charge for London drivers.
Ultra-Low Emission Zones Around The UK
Clean Air Zones (CAZs) are defined geographical areas where certain types of vehicles are required to comply with emissions standards or pay a daily charge.
Seven English cities charge under Clean Air Zones: Bath, Birmingham, Bradford, Bristol, Portsmouth, Sheffield and Tyneside (Newcastle and Gateshead). Scotland's Low Emission Zones in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow also charge non-compliant cars. Fully electric cars meet the emissions standards used in these zones, which is one more reason to check the salary sacrifice cars available if you drive between cities.
The table below gives you an idea of some places in the UK that have Clean Air Zones, the daily charge and when they are active. This table doesn't include all Clean Air Zones in the UK.
| Cities | Type | Private cars charged? | Daily charge | Active |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bath | Class C | No | £9 for small vehicles, £100 for large | 24/7 |
| Birmingham | Class D | Yes | £8 for small vehicles, £50 for large | 24/7 |
| Bradford | Class C | No | £7 for taxis, £9 for small vehicles, £50 for large | 24/7 |
| Bristol | Class D | Yes | £9 for small vehicles, £100 for large | 24/7 |
| Edinburgh | Low Emission Zone | Yes | 24/7 | |
| Glasgow | Low Emission Zone | Yes | 24/7 | |
| Oxford | Zero Emission Zone pilot | Check the local council | £2 for ULEZ vehicles, £4 for low emission vehicles, £10 non-compliant vehicles | 7am-7pm daily |
| Newcastle & Gateshead | Class C | No | £12.50 for small vehicles, £50 for large | 24/7 |
| Portsmouth | Class B | No | £10 for taxis, £50 for large vehicles | 24/7 |
| Sheffield | Class C | No | £10 for small vehicles, £50 for large | 24/7 |
Table data has been taken from Motorway.co.uk
Some cities have decided against charging zones. Greater Manchester dropped its plans for a charging Clean Air Zone in January 2024 in favour of an investment-led plan, so check with the local council before you travel to a city that has been discussing one.
Other cities use different measures where a charging zone doesn't fit, such as cycling routes and extra EV charging points.
Does ULEZ Work?
The One Year Report, published in March 2025, estimated that harmful roadside nitrogen dioxide (NO2) concentrations were 27% lower across London in 2024 than they would have been without the ULEZ. It also estimated that nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from cars and vans in outer London were 14% lower, and exhaust particulate (PM2.5) emissions from cars and vans 31% lower, than without the London-wide expansion. Both are modelled comparisons against a "no ULEZ" scenario, so they show the likely effect of the policy, not a direct count. The report also found that average NO2 concentrations across London improved faster than in the rest of England between 2017 and 2024, although it notes those trends aren't attributable to the ULEZ alone.
More recent analysis backs up the direction of travel. Imperial College London, commissioned by the Greater London Authority and TfL, estimates that annual average NO2 fell by 41% and PM2.5 by 28% across London between 2019 and 2024, and that deaths linked to air pollution fell by around 40%. Those results reflect long-term trends and all of London's air quality policies together, and the study doesn't attribute the fall to the ULEZ alone. For drivers weighing an electric car, that wider picture is covered in our guide on how salary sacrifice can help companies cut emissions.
Sadiq Khan said in June 2026 that under the policies in place when he took office in 2016, it would have taken almost 200 years to bring London's air within legal limits. "We've done it in nine," he said, and City Hall reports that London met the legal limit for NO2 for the first time in 2024.
How Has ULEZ Changed Behaviours In London?
TfL's camera data shows how quickly London's vehicles have changed. The share of vehicles seen in the zone that meet ULEZ standards rose from 39% in February 2017 to 96.7% in September 2024, and the daily average number of non-compliant vehicles fell from 170,000 in June 2023 to 71,000 in September 2024. Diesel cars accounted for most of the fall, with their compliance rising from 70.5% in June 2023 to 86.8% in September 2024. City Hall now puts overall compliance above 97%, which is why most drivers no longer pay the ULEZ charge at all.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Electric Cars Pay the London Congestion Charge in 2026?
Yes. Electric cars have paid the Congestion Charge since 2 January 2026, after the 100% Cleaner Vehicle Discount ended on 25 December 2025. The daily charge is £13.50 for electric cars registered on Auto Pay, or £18 for those that aren't. The ULEZ charge doesn't apply to fully electric cars.
Are Electric Cars Still Exempt from the ULEZ Charge?
Yes. Fully electric cars have no tailpipe emissions and meet the ULEZ standards, so they don't pay the £12.50 daily charge. The 2026 changes only affect the Congestion Charge. Petrol cars generally need to meet Euro 4 and diesel cars Euro 6, which covers most petrol cars sold new from 2006 and most diesel cars sold new from September 2015.
Do Plug-In Hybrids Get the Congestion Charge Discount?
No. Only fully electric cars registered on Auto Pay get the 25% discount, so plug-in hybrids pay the full £18. A plug-in hybrid can still meet the ULEZ standards, in which case it pays no ULEZ charge.
How Do I Register My Electric Car for the Congestion Charge Discount?
Add the car to your Auto Pay account through your TfL road user charging account before you drive into the zone. TfL applies the 25% discount automatically once the vehicle is registered. If the car isn't on Auto Pay when it enters the zone, you pay the full £18.
When Does the Electric Car Discount Change?
TfL will cut the discount for electric cars from 25% to 12.5% from 4 March 2030, which is £15.75 a day at today's £18 charge. TfL can also make routine annual increases to the base charge without a public consultation. Check TfL's website for the latest rates before you travel, and compare that with the running costs of an electric car.
How Much Is the ULEZ Charge in 2026?
The ULEZ charge is £12.50 a day for vehicles that don't meet the standards. It applies 24 hours a day, every day except Christmas Day. Most drivers don't pay it because City Hall reports that over 97% of vehicles seen driving in London now comply.
London's two schemes now work differently for electric car drivers. The ULEZ stays free for fully electric cars, while the Congestion Charge costs £13.50 a day on Auto Pay and £18 without it, with the discount falling to 12.5% from 4 March 2030. For most drivers, registering on Auto Pay before entering the zone is the step that protects the discount, and the annual cost depends on how many days you drive into central London. Check TfL's website for current rates before you travel, because charges and discounts can change. If you're comparing options, an electric car through salary sacrifice typically saves employees 20-50% compared to a personal lease.
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Last updated: 30/09/2026
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