UK Car Tax (VED) Calculator 2025/26

Vehicle Excise Duty (VED), commonly called road tax or car tax, is an annual charge you must pay to keep your vehicle on public roads in the UK. The amount you pay depends on when your car was first registered, its CO2 emissions, and its fuel type. Cars registered after April 2017 follow the system shown above: a variable first-year rate based on emissions, then a flat standard rate of around 190 per year from year two onwards. Vehicles costing over 40,000 pay an additional supplement of 410 per year for the first five years at the standard rate.

Diesel vehicles that do not meet the RDE2 emissions standard pay a surcharge on their first-year rate, which is reflected in the higher diesel figures above. Hybrid vehicles are taxed at the same rate as petrol cars. Fully electric vehicles were exempt from VED until April 2025 but now pay the standard rate, bringing them in line with other vehicles.

Your VED is due annually and can be paid in a single lump sum, by direct debit every six months (at a 10% surcharge), or monthly by direct debit (also surcharged). If you take your car off the road, you must file a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN) with the DVLA. Driving without valid tax is an offence that can result in fines of up to 1,000. You can check any vehicle MOT and tax status for free on the GOV.UK website using the registration number.

When buying a used car, always verify the VED status before completing the purchase. Tax does not transfer with the vehicle, so you must tax it in your own name before driving it away. The previous owner receives an automatic refund for any remaining full months of tax.