Car tax, officially called Vehicle Excise Duty or VED, is the annual charge most drivers in the United Kingdom must pay to drive or keep a vehicle on a public road. It is administered by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, the DVLA, on behalf of HM Treasury. There is no paper tax disc any more: payment is recorded on the DVLA system and checked by automatic number plate recognition cameras. This guide explains how to tax your car, how much you will pay in the 2026-27 tax year, and the exemptions, refunds and penalties that apply.

How to tax your car online

The quickest way to tax a car is online through the official GOV.UK service at gov.uk/vehicle-tax. You will need your vehicle registration number and one reference number: the 11-digit reference from your V5C logbook, the 16-digit reference from your V11 tax reminder letter, or the 12-digit reference on the green V5C/2 new keeper slip if you have just bought the car. Your car must also have valid insurance, and a valid MOT if it is more than three years old. The DVLA usually checks both automatically. Once you pay, the vehicle is recorded as taxed straight away, and you should receive confirmation by email.

You can also tax your car by phone on 0300 123 4321, a service that is available 24 hours a day, although Direct Debit cannot be set up by phone. Alternatively, you can pay at a Post Office branch that handles vehicle tax, taking your V5C logbook or new keeper slip, payment details and evidence of a valid MOT. Only use the official GOV.UK service or these official routes: third-party websites that charge a fee to tax your car are unofficial, and you should never pay one of them for a service the DVLA provides directly.

How much is car tax in 2026-27?

How much you pay depends on when your car was first registered, its fuel type, its carbon dioxide emissions and, for newer cars, its original list price. For most cars first registered on or after 1 April 2017, the standard rate from the second year onwards is £200 a year in 2026-27, up from £195 in 2025-26. That flat rate applies whatever the fuel type, including electric cars. Paying for six months costs £110, or £105 by Direct Debit, and spreading the cost over 12 monthly Direct Debit instalments brings the total annual bill to £210, because of the surcharge on monthly and six-monthly payments. There is no surcharge on a single annual payment.

In the first year, cars registered on or after 1 April 2017 pay a rate based on their carbon dioxide emissions, sometimes called the showroom tax. For petrol cars, diesel cars that meet the RDE2 emissions standard, alternative-fuel cars and zero-emission cars, the 2026-27 first-year rates run from £10 for a car emitting no carbon dioxide, through £115 for 1 to 50 grams per kilometre, £280 for 76 to 90 grams, £560 for 131 to 150 grams, £1,410 for 151 to 170 grams, £2,270 for 171 to 190 grams, £3,420 for 191 to 225 grams and £4,850 for 226 to 255 grams, up to £5,690 for cars emitting more than 255 grams per kilometre. Diesel cars that do not meet the RDE2 standard pay higher first-year rates in most bands. From the second year, almost every car in this group drops to the flat £200 standard rate.

The expensive car supplement

If your car had a list price of more than £40,000 when it was new, you pay an additional £440 a year on top of the standard rate for five years, from the second year of registration until the end of the sixth year. That takes the total annual bill to £640 during those years. The list price is the published price before any discounts, not the price you actually paid, and the supplement follows the vehicle rather than the owner, so it can still apply when you buy a used car. From April 2026 the threshold for zero-emission cars rose from £40,000 to £50,000, so electric cars priced between £40,000 and £50,000 and registered from April 2025 onwards no longer pay the supplement. Petrol, diesel and hybrid cars keep the £40,000 threshold.

Older cars and electric cars

Cars first registered between 1 March 2001 and 31 March 2017 pay an annual rate based on their carbon dioxide band, from band A to band M, and the same rate applies every year rather than changing after the first year. In 2026-27 the rates run from £20 a year for bands A and B, through £170 for band D, £275 for band G and £410 for band J, up to £760 for band L and £790 for band M. One change still catches people out: band A, for cars emitting up to 100 grams per kilometre, was previously free and now costs £20 a year. Cars first registered before 1 March 2001 pay a flat annual rate based on engine size: £230 for engines up to 1,549cc and £375 for larger engines.

Electric cars are no longer exempt from vehicle tax. The exemption ended on 1 April 2025, and electric cars now pay the same standard rate as other cars: £10 in the first year for a new electric car, then £200 a year from the second year. Electric cars registered between 1 March 2001 and 31 March 2017 sit in band A and pay £20 a year. The government has also announced a pay-per-mile duty for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles from April 2028, at approximately 3p per mile, in addition to the existing standard rate. That charge is not in force now and the way it will be administered has not yet been confirmed, so it should not affect decisions made today, but it is worth bearing in mind when working out longer-term running costs.

Buying a car, SORN and refunds

Vehicle tax does not transfer when a car changes hands. When you sell a car and notify the DVLA, your tax is cancelled automatically and a refund is issued for each complete calendar month remaining. As the buyer, you must tax the vehicle yourself before driving it away, using the green new keeper slip the seller gives you. You can drive a newly bought car home straight away only if it is both insured and taxed before you set off. If you do not tax it, you risk a fine, penalty points or the vehicle being seized.

If you are not using your vehicle, you can declare it off the road with a Statutory Off Road Notification, known as a SORN, instead of paying tax. You cannot simply stop paying without telling the DVLA. You can cancel vehicle tax and claim a refund if your car is sold, scrapped, exported, declared SORN, or reported stolen and not recovered. Refunds are calculated automatically and paid by cheque to the name and address on the V5C, for each complete calendar month remaining from the date the DVLA processes the cancellation. Part months are not refunded. If you pay by Direct Debit, it stops automatically when the tax is cancelled, so you do not need to contact your bank.

Exemptions from car tax

Some vehicles are exempt from paying vehicle tax, but most must still be registered and taxed at a zero rate. Failing to tax an exempt vehicle can still lead to a penalty, because the exemption covers the payment rather than the requirement to apply. Vehicles manufactured more than 40 years ago qualify for the historic vehicle exemption under the rolling 40-year rule: from 1 April 2026 this covers vehicles built before 1 January 1986, and the threshold moves forward by one year every April. You must still apply for the free historic vehicle tax class, and the vehicle must not have been substantially changed. The exemption also removes the MOT requirement, although an annual check is still strongly recommended for road safety.

Vehicles used by people receiving the higher rate mobility component of Disability Living Allowance, the enhanced rate of the mobility component of Personal Independence Payment, or other qualifying benefits are also exempt. The exemption covers one vehicle per qualifying person and must be renewed annually. If you are not sure whether your vehicle qualifies for an exemption, check the GOV.UK vehicle tax pages before you assume you do not need to pay.

What happens if you do not pay car tax?

Driving or keeping an untaxed vehicle on a public road is a criminal offence, and automatic number plate recognition cameras cross-reference number plates against the DVLA register continuously, so an untaxed vehicle is likely to be flagged without any roadside check. Penalties can include an automated £80 fixed penalty notice, reduced to £40 if paid within 33 days, clamping or towing at your expense, and court proceedings with fines of up to £1,000. If you receive a penalty but have evidence of payment, for example where a Direct Debit failed without your knowledge, contact the DVLA with proof, as processing errors can usually be resolved without the fine standing.

Before you buy a used car, check its tax status free of charge on the DVLA vehicle enquiry service at gov.uk/check-vehicle-tax. You need only the registration number, and the check shows the current tax status, the expiry date, the MOT status and whether a SORN is in place. It is a useful check after you have taxed your own car too, to confirm the update has been processed. Rates are usually uprated each April and can change at a Budget, so always re-check the current GOV.UK vehicle tax rate tables before relying on a figure from an older guide.