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    When does a car become tax exempt?

    In the UK, all cars and vans need to pay the Vehicle Excise Duty (VED), also called the road or car tax, to legally drive on public roads. The car tax helps fund essential roadwork and motorway maintenance across the country.

    The amount you pay in road tax is determined by your vehicle registration date, C02 emissions, and fuel type. However, there are a few exceptions to these vehicle taxation rules.

    Once your car or van reaches a certain age or meets specific government criteria, you are no longer required to pay road tax. However, exemption specifications can change year to year. To help save money, simplify vehicle taxation processes, and keep your car legally on the road, car owners need to stay updated on the latest VED criteria and exceptions.

    Which cars are tax exempt from road tax?

    A handful of vehicles are ‘exempt’ from road tax, meaning that owners do not need to pay the vehicle tax. Importantly, vehicle owners must still file road tax paperwork, even though they do not have to pay any fees.

    The following types of vehicles are exempt from paying road tax:

    • Historic cars, built before 1 January 1986 under the rolling 40-year rule (see below)
    • Vehicles used by a disabled person
    • Disabled passenger vehicles
    • Mobility vehicles and powered wheelchairs
    • Electric vehicles registered before April 2025 (see the electric car section below, as this has now changed)
    • Vehicles with a valid Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN)
    • Vehicles used for agriculture, horticulture, or forestry

    Unsure of your car’s road tax status? See our comprehensive VED guide for more.

    Cars do not need to pay road tax if they are classified as historic, electric, or used by a disabled person.

    Cars do not need to pay road tax if they are classified as historic, electric, or used by a disabled person.

    When does a classic car become tax exempt?

    To qualify for historic vehicle tax exemption in the UK, a car must be more than 40 years old. This cut-off is a rolling one, so it moves forward by one year every 1 April. As of 2026, a car built before 1 January 1986 (or registered before 8 January 1986) can stop paying road tax from 1 April 2026.

    You can read the full criteria in gov.uk’s historic vehicle rules. To move your car into the historic tax class and stop paying VED, you must apply for a vehicle tax exemption. Once your application succeeds, the DVLA will send you an updated V5C logbook showing the historic tax class.

    Note: as gov.uk sets out, a historic car is not exempt if it is used for hire or reward (for example, as a taxi for paying customers) or commercially for a trade or business, so in those cases it must still pay road tax.

    Historic cars are also exempt from annual MOT testing if they have not had substantial changes in the last 30 years, such as replacing the chassis, body, axles, or engine, according to the DfT’s MOT exemption criteria. Even though they are exempt from the MOT, these vehicles must remain in a safe and roadworthy condition. Regular maintenance and upkeep are crucial to ensure they meet legal requirements for road use.

    Disability transportation

    Cars and vans

    If a vehicle is being used by a disabled person or by an organisation providing transport for disabled people, it can claim a disability exemption when filing road tax. If qualified, the vehicle will not be subject to road tax fees.

    Drivers can only use the disability exemption on one vehicle at a time. Additionally, ambulances do not count as disabled passenger vehicles for road tax purposes.

    Visit the DVLA’s website to see if you’re eligible and how to claim.

    Mobility vehicles and powered wheelchairs

    Other smaller-scale mobility vehicles are also exempt from paying road tax. This includes vehicles that:

    • Have a maximum speed of eight mph on the road
    • Are fitted with a device limiting speed to four mph on pavements

    Electric and low emission vehicles

    To promote environmentally-friendly automotive practices, the UK government offers many benefits for owners of electric vehicles and low emissions vehicles. These include:

    Vehicle Excise Duty (VED)

    Fully electric cars are no longer exempt from VED. The exemption ended on 31 March 2025, and electric cars have paid road tax since 1 April 2025. Read our full electric vehicle tax guide for more.

    The standard annual rate is £200 in 2026/27, up from £195 in 2025/26. It applies to most cars registered on or after 1 April 2017, including electric cars. You can confirm the latest VED rates on the DVLA website.

    How much you pay depends on when your electric car was registered:

    • New electric cars registered on or after 1 April 2025 pay a reduced first-year rate of £10, then move to the £200 standard rate.
    • Electric cars registered between 1 April 2017 and 31 March 2025 pay the £200 standard rate.
    • Electric cars registered between 1 March 2001 and 31 March 2017 pay £20 a year.

    Cars with a list price over £40,000 pay an Expensive Car Supplement of an extra £440 a year in years two to six. For fully electric cars, this threshold rose to £50,000 from 1 April 2026. Only electric cars listed above £50,000 now pay it, which takes their annual bill to £640, as set out in the DVLA’s rate tables.

    Hybrids and other alternative fuel cars used to pay a small discount on road tax, but the government removed that discount on 1 April 2025, according to the DVLA’s rate tables. These cars still produce some CO2 emissions because they use traditional fuel alongside their electric motors. As a result, hybrid cars now pay the same standard rate as petrol and diesel cars.

    Benefit-in-Kind (BIK) tax

    Electric cars also benefit from a low Benefit-in-Kind (BIK) rate for company car tax, set at 4% in 2026/27, up from 3% in 2025/26. That is still far below the rates for petrol and diesel cars. You can check HMRC’s company car tax rates for the current figures. Plug-in hybrids and some low emission cars also have lower BIK rates than traditional petrol and diesel cars.

    Congestion charges and Clean Air Zones

    Across the country, more cities are unveiling Clean Air Zones (CAZs) and Low Emissions Zones (LEZ) to cut back on vehicle emissions in heavily populated areas. Some cities offer exemptions or discounts for electric and low emission vehicles entering these zones, allowing you to continue driving hassle-free.

    For example, EVs do not have to pay London’s congestion charge or ULEZ fee, both of which can cost a pretty penny.

    Check your car’s emissions status with our free ULEZ Checker tool.

    Fuel duty

    Electric vehicles are not subject to fuel duty as they do not use traditional fossil fuels.

    SORN vehicles

    If your car is registered as SORN and off the road, you do not need to pay car tax. You will get a road tax refund on anything you have paid on the remaining months of the year.

    It is crucial that you notify the DVLA that your car is off the road. If you keep an untaxed car without telling them, the DVLA can issue an £80 late-licensing penalty. This is halved to £40 if you pay within 33 days. If you drive an untaxed car without a SORN, you could face a settlement plus court fines. These can reach £1,000, or five times the tax owed, and your car may be clamped. You can read the full detail in the DVLA’s enforcement rules.

    Vehicles used for agriculture, horticulture, and forestry

    As gov.uk’s list of exempt vehicles confirms, tractors, agricultural engines, and light agricultural vehicles that are used off-road do not need to pay road tax. Additionally, ‘limited use’ vehicles driven for short journeys of no more than 1.5km on public roads between land used by the same person are exempt from taxation.

    How can I check my car’s tax status?

    Learn all you need to know about checking your vehicle’s tax status and renewing your road tax with our comprehensive guide.

    How do I apply for a tax exemption?

    To move your car into the historic or disabled tax class, you apply at a Post Office that deals with vehicle tax. Take the following with you:

    • your V5C logbook, in your name
    • your V11 tax reminder, if you have one
    • either evidence of a current MOT, or a completed V112 declaration if your car is exempt from an MOT

    You must still tax your car in its new class, even though you pay nothing. For a step-by-step walkthrough, read our guide on how to tax your car.

    FAQs

    Is my car tax exempt after 25 years?

    There is no 25-year road tax exemption in the UK. A car only becomes exempt once it is more than 40 years old, under the rolling historic vehicle rule explained above. You can check your car’s tax status on gov.uk at any time.

    Remember: even if your car is tax exempt, you must still fill out the road tax paperwork. Otherwise, you risk fines and other penalties.

    What makes a car tax exempt?

    A car becomes tax exempt based on factors like its age, emissions, and usage. Generally, cars more than 40 years old are exempt from road tax under the rolling historic vehicle rule. Cars used for disability transportation can also qualify. Fully electric cars are no longer exempt, though older electric cars pay a reduced rate depending on when they were registered.

    Do I still need insurance and an MOT if my car is tax exempt?

    Tax exemption does not remove your other legal duties. You must insure any car you drive on public roads, or declare it SORN if it is off the road. A historic car over 40 years old can be exempt from the MOT if it has not been substantially changed, but you must still keep it roadworthy.

    Were there recent changes to car tax in the UK?

    Yes. On 1 April 2025, the rules changed and electric cars started paying VED for the first time. Electric cars now pay road tax at the same rate as their petrol counterparts. Hybrid cars also lost their discount on the annual basic VED rate. Zero emission cars registered before 1 April 2017 now pay £20 a year. The government introduced this policy because the number of EV drivers keeps rising as we move towards the electric switchover in 2035.

    Will I have to pay car tax on electric cars after 2035?

    From 2035, new petrol and diesel cars will no longer be sold in the UK. To make up for the shortfall in taxation funds, many experts believe road tax will continue to apply to EVs. This follows the 2025 switch to requiring EVs to pay road tax. Whether rates and charges will change again is not yet known. Read our handy guide on buying and selling an electric car for more on road tax changes.

    Need to sell your car?

    Want to learn more about owning, maintaining, and selling your car? Check out more of our guides here, covering everything from Clean Air Zones to car tax, and plate changes to part exchange. 

    The information provided on this page is for general informational purposes only and should not be considered as professional advice.