Do You Pay Road Tax on Electric Cars? Rates and Penalties

Yes, you pay road tax on electric cars in the UK. Since 1 April 2025, fully electric vehicles have been subject to Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) rather than being exempt. What you owe depends on when your car was first registered and, for pricier models, its original list price. A new EV registered from April 2025 pays £10 in its first year and then moves to the standard rate, which is £195 now and rises to £200 from April 2026.1GOV.UK. Vehicle Tax for Electric, Zero and Low Emission Vehicles

Rates by When Your Car Was Registered

The DVLA groups electric cars into three registration eras, each with its own rate.

Even where the bill is small, you still need to tax the vehicle each year through the DVLA. The renewal confirms the car is insured and has a valid MOT, and automatic number plate recognition cameras scan for untaxed vehicles on public roads.

The Expensive Car Supplement

If your electric car had a high list price when new, an additional surcharge applies. The Expensive Car Supplement runs for five years, from the second time you tax the vehicle through to the sixth year of registration.

The threshold for zero-emission cars rose from £40,000 to £50,000 in April 2026. If your EV’s list price sits between £40,001 and £50,000, you no longer owe the supplement when renewing from April 2026 onward.2HM Revenue & Customs. Increase in the Vehicle Excise Duty Expensive Car Supplement Threshold for Zero Emission Cars The change applies retrospectively, so most EVs registered from April 2025 in that price band avoid the charge entirely. The higher threshold only covers fully electric and zero-emission models. Petrol, diesel, and hybrid vehicles still use the £40,000 cutoff.

For electric cars priced above £50,000, the supplement is £440 per year for five years. Combined with the £200 standard rate, that puts the annual VED bill around £640 for a premium EV in its second through sixth years. The list price used for this calculation is the manufacturer’s recommended retail price including all factory-fitted options, delivery charges, and VAT. Discounts, trade-ins, and grants do not reduce the figure. If the sticker price exceeded the threshold, you pay the supplement regardless of what you actually spent.

Plug-in Hybrids Are Treated Differently

Plug-in hybrids have always paid VED because they still produce tailpipe emissions. What changed in April 2025 was the removal of the £10 annual discount that alternative fuel vehicles used to receive.1GOV.UK. Vehicle Tax for Electric, Zero and Low Emission Vehicles

A plug-in hybrid registered from April 2017 onward now pays the same standard rate as any petrol or diesel car: £195, rising to £200 from April 2026. The first-year rate for a newly registered hybrid varies with its CO2 emissions, so a low-emission PHEV pays less in year one than a high-emission petrol car. From year two, everyone converges on the same flat rate. The raised £50,000 Expensive Car Supplement threshold does not extend to hybrids; a PHEV with a list price above £40,000 still attracts the supplement.

Electric Vans

Electric vans lost their VED exemption on the same date as electric cars. Zero-emission light goods vehicles with a gross weight under 3,500 kg now pay the same rate as petrol and diesel equivalents, in the region of £345 to £360 per year. That is a meaningful jump from the previous £0, so operators running small electric fleets should budget for it. The Expensive Car Supplement does not apply to light goods vehicles regardless of what the van cost.

Company Car Tax on Electric Vehicles

If you drive an electric car as a company car, you pay Benefit in Kind (BiK) tax based on a percentage of the car’s list price. For the 2025/26 tax year, the BiK rate for a zero-emission vehicle is 3%. It rises to 4% for 2026/27, then by one percentage point each year through 2027/28 to reach 5%, and 7% by 2029/30. Petrol and diesel company cars typically sit between 20% and 37% depending on emissions.

A company EV with a £40,000 list price generates a taxable benefit of £1,600 in 2026/27 (4% of £40,000). A basic-rate taxpayer owes £320 in tax for the year; a higher-rate taxpayer owes £640. Even as the rates climb, electric company cars remain far cheaper in BiK terms than combustion equivalents.

How to Tax Your Electric Car

You can tax your vehicle online through GOV.UK or at a Post Office branch that handles vehicle tax. To do it online, you need the 11-digit reference number from your V5C registration certificate or the 16-digit code from a V11 reminder letter.3GOV.UK. Tax Your Vehicle Without a Vehicle Tax Reminder If you have just bought the car and do not yet have a V5C in your name, use the 12-digit reference from the new keeper slip. The system checks your insurance and MOT automatically. Once processed, you receive a digital confirmation. There is no physical tax disc.

Payment Options

Paying for 12 months in a single transaction carries no surcharge. Monthly or six-monthly Direct Debit is available but adds a 5% surcharge.4GOV.UK. Vehicle Tax Direct Debit Payments On a £200 annual rate, monthly payments work out to around £210 per year.

SORN If Your Car Is Off the Road

If you keep your electric car off the road and do not want to tax or insure it, you must make a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN). This applies even though EV road tax used to be free. Failing to declare a SORN triggers an automatic £80 fine.5GOV.UK. When You Need to Make a SORN – Overview A SORN lasts until you tax the vehicle again or sell it.

Penalties for Not Taxing Your Car

Penalties are the same whether the car runs on electricity, petrol, or diesel.

Untaxed vehicles spotted by ANPR cameras can be clamped or impounded, and the cost of recovering an impounded car easily exceeds any VED bill. For £200 a year, keeping the tax current is the easier path.