The tax on a van is £360 a year for most light goods vehicles registered on or after 1 March 2001, based on the Vehicle Excise Duty rates that take effect in April 2026. Older vans, lower-emission vans registered in specific date windows, and pre-1985 historic vans pay less or nothing at all. You can pay online at gov.uk, at a participating Post Office, or by direct debit, and the flat annual rate is the cheapest way to do it.
What You Pay From April 2026
The rate depends on when the van was registered and, for a narrow band of vehicles, its emissions standard. Paying the full twelve months upfront without direct debit costs:
- Standard light goods vehicles registered on or after 1 March 2001 (tax class TC39): £360 a year, or £198 for six months.1GOV.UK. Rates of Vehicle Tax for Cars, Motorcycles, Light Goods Vehicles and Private Light Goods Vehicles April 2026
- Euro 4 light goods vehicles registered between 1 March 2003 and 31 December 2006 (TC36): £140 a year, or £77 for six months.1GOV.UK. Rates of Vehicle Tax for Cars, Motorcycles, Light Goods Vehicles and Private Light Goods Vehicles April 2026
- Euro 5 light goods vehicles registered between 1 January 2009 and 31 December 2010 (TC36): £140 a year, or £77 for six months.1GOV.UK. Rates of Vehicle Tax for Cars, Motorcycles, Light Goods Vehicles and Private Light Goods Vehicles April 2026
- Vans registered before 1 March 2001 with an engine up to 1,549 cc: £230 a year.1GOV.UK. Rates of Vehicle Tax for Cars, Motorcycles, Light Goods Vehicles and Private Light Goods Vehicles April 2026
- Vans registered before 1 March 2001 with an engine of 1,550 cc or more: £375 a year.1GOV.UK. Rates of Vehicle Tax for Cars, Motorcycles, Light Goods Vehicles and Private Light Goods Vehicles April 2026
Rates are reviewed each year and usually change in April after the Budget.
Paying Monthly or Six-Monthly Costs More
Splitting the payment adds a surcharge. For a standard TC39 van at £360:
- Monthly direct debit: £378 across twelve months, 5% more than paying upfront.1GOV.UK. Rates of Vehicle Tax for Cars, Motorcycles, Light Goods Vehicles and Private Light Goods Vehicles April 2026
- Six-monthly by direct debit: £189 per half, £378 a year, also 5% more.1GOV.UK. Rates of Vehicle Tax for Cars, Motorcycles, Light Goods Vehicles and Private Light Goods Vehicles April 2026
- Six-monthly without direct debit: £198 per half, £396 a year, 10% more.1GOV.UK. Rates of Vehicle Tax for Cars, Motorcycles, Light Goods Vehicles and Private Light Goods Vehicles April 2026
A direct debit renews automatically when the current tax runs out, as long as you are still shown as the registered keeper and the van has valid insurance and MOT.2Inside DVLA. 5 Myth-Busting Facts About Taxing Your Vehicle If you sell the van or take it off the road, you have to cancel the direct debit yourself.
What You Need Before You Pay
- Your V5C registration certificate (the logbook), which carries the 11-digit reference number used to tax online. The logbook must be in your name.3GOV.UK. Tax Your Vehicle Without a Vehicle Tax Reminder
- Or your V11 reminder letter from DVLA, which carries a 16-digit reference number valid for that renewal.4GOV.UK. Register Your Vehicle as Off the Road (SORN)
- A valid MOT. The online system checks the MOT database, and it can take up to two days for a fresh pass to show up, so you may not be able to tax the van the same day it passes.5GOV.UK. Tax Your Vehicle
- Insurance in place. The system verifies cover before letting you complete the transaction.
Lost your logbook? A replacement V5C costs £25, and you can also pick up a V62 application at a Post Office.6GOV.UK. Get a Vehicle Log Book (V5C)
How to Pay
The quickest route is gov.uk/vehicle-tax. Enter the reference number from your V5C or V11, confirm the vehicle details, choose your payment period, and pay by debit or credit card. The record updates within minutes.5GOV.UK. Tax Your Vehicle
To pay in person, take your V5C or V11, evidence of a valid MOT, and your payment to a participating Post Office branch.7Post Office. Buy or Renew Your Vehicle Tax In Northern Ireland, bring a paper insurance certificate or cover note as well.
You will not get a paper disc. Once payment goes through, the national database records the van as taxed, and you can check the status any time at gov.uk/check-vehicle-tax.
Electric Vans Now Pay Too
Electric and hydrogen-powered vans lost their VED exemption on 1 April 2025. Most electric vans now pay the standard light goods vehicle rate, which is £360 a year for 2026.8GOV.UK. Vehicle Tax for Electric, Zero and Low Emission Vehicles If your electric van was previously taxed at the nil rate, you pay the standard rate at your next renewal.
When You Don’t Need to Pay
Two situations remove the tax bill, but neither removes the paperwork.
If the van is not being used or kept on a public road, you can declare a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN) instead of taxing it. Every registered vehicle has to be either taxed or SORNed, and doing neither triggers enforcement.4GOV.UK. Register Your Vehicle as Off the Road (SORN) You can SORN online with your V5C or V11 reference, by phoning 0300 123 4321, or by posting a V890. SORN is free and lasts until you tax the van again or sell it. The van has to stay off public roads for the whole SORN period; driving a SORNed van is treated the same as driving an untaxed one.
Vans built before 1 January 1985 are exempt from vehicle tax. If the build date is unknown but the van was first registered before 8 January 1985, it also qualifies.9GOV.UK. Historic (Classic) Vehicles – MOT and Vehicle Tax – Eligibility You still apply for the tax; the rate is just £0.
Selling the Van
Van tax does not pass to the new owner. The buyer has to tax it in their own name before driving away.10GOV.UK. Tell DVLA You’ve Sold, Transferred or Bought a Vehicle Once you notify DVLA of the sale, your existing tax is cancelled and you get a refund for the full months remaining. Part-months are not refunded, so a sale near the start of a month loses less money than one near the end.
What Happens If You Don’t Tax It
DVLA uses automated checks and roadside enforcement, and the consequences build fast.
- An automatic £80 late licensing penalty, halved to £40 if paid within 33 days.11Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency. DVLA Enforcement of Vehicle Tax, Registration and Insurance Offences
- If that is not paid, prosecution at a magistrates’ court, where the penalty is £1,000 or five times the tax owed, whichever is greater.11Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency. DVLA Enforcement of Vehicle Tax, Registration and Insurance Offences
- Clamping or impounding. Release requires a surety deposit of up to £700 for non-car vehicles on top of taxing the van.12GOV.UK. Get a Clamped or Impounded Vehicle Released
- Disposal. An unreleased impounded van can be crushed or sold.12GOV.UK. Get a Clamped or Impounded Vehicle Released
The “five times the tax owed” rule matters at van rates. At £360 a year, the court penalty maximum works out at £1,800 rather than the flat £1,000, and that sits on top of clamping fees, court costs, and the tax itself.