V112 MOT Exemption Declaration: Eligibility, Filling In, and Submitting

Form V112 is the DVLA’s declaration of exemption from the MOT test. You use it to tax a vehicle that legally does not need an MOT, because the Post Office cannot process the tax application without written confirmation that the missing certificate is legitimate.¹ It is a one-page form, free to download from GOV.UK or available on paper at any Post Office branch that handles vehicle tax.²

Check That Your Vehicle Actually Qualifies

Signing the V112 is a legal declaration, so the first job is to be sure the vehicle really is exempt. The most common reason for using the form is the historic-vehicle rule: your vehicle does not need an MOT if it was built or first registered more than 40 years ago and has had no substantial changes.³ The 40-year threshold rolls forward each year, so a car first registered in 1986 becomes eligible from April 2026. Until that tax year begins, the owner still has to tax and MOT the vehicle in the normal way.⁴

“Substantial changes” means alterations that change how the vehicle works. GOV.UK gives replacing the chassis, body, axles, or engine as examples.³ Routine maintenance, cosmetic restoration, and like-for-like replacement of worn parts do not count. A swap to a different engine type or a substantially different body does, and the vehicle no longer qualifies regardless of age. The government’s separate exemption criteria guidance specifies that this check looks back over the previous 30 years.⁵

Historic vehicles are not the only category the V112 covers. Other exempt types include:

Tractors used for agricultural purposes.
Electrically powered goods vehicles first registered before 1 March 2015.
Track-laying vehicles that move on continuous tracks rather than wheels.
Articulated vehicles that are not lorries or buses.

The full list is printed on the V112 itself, organised into lettered categories.¹ If your vehicle does not fit clearly into one of them, it still needs an MOT.

Filling In the Form

The V112 is short, and most of what it asks for comes straight off your V5C registration certificate (the logbook). Have that in front of you before you start. The fields are:

Vehicle registration mark, copied exactly from the V5C.
Make and model, as recorded on the V5C rather than a casual description.
Registered keeper’s full name and address, matching the V5C.
The exemption category letter that identifies why the vehicle is exempt.
Your signature confirming the information is correct and the vehicle genuinely qualifies.

Picking the Right Category Letter

The back of the form lists lettered categories from A onward, each tied to a specific vehicle type or use. Category A covers motor tractors, category B covers track-laying vehicles, and category C covers articulated vehicles that are not lorries or buses. Most private owners of classic cars and motorcycles will use the category for vehicles of historic interest, which applies to any vehicle built or first registered more than 40 years ago with no substantial changes. Read the descriptions carefully, because the wrong letter can hold up your tax application.

When the Build Date Is Not Clear

Some older vehicles, particularly imports and kit cars, lack clear records of when they were manufactured. If your V5C does not show a date proving the vehicle is more than 40 years old, the DVLA accepts supporting evidence: a letter from the manufacturer on headed paper, or a letter from a DVLA-approved owners’ club for that marque. GOV.UK publishes the list of approved clubs. Where the supporting letter states the original registration date, the DVLA uses that; otherwise it defaults to 1 January of the stated year of manufacture.

Submitting the V112

You cannot submit the V112 online. The DVLA sends all MOT-exempt tax applications to a Post Office branch that handles vehicle tax.⁶ Take with you:

The completed and signed V112 with the correct category selected.
Your V5C logbook in your name.
Your V11 vehicle tax reminder, if you have one. It is not essential but speeds the transaction up.

The clerk processes the declaration and the DVLA links the exemption to your vehicle’s record. From that point the vehicle shows as taxed and legal without an MOT certificate on the system, so it will not trigger automatic enforcement cameras or police alerts for a missing MOT.⁶

MOT Exemption Is Not Tax Exemption

The two exemptions run on different calendars, and the V112 only handles the MOT side. Vehicle tax exemption for historic vehicles follows its own threshold: from 1 April 2025, vehicles built before 1 January 1985 (or registered before 8 January 1985 where the build date is unknown) qualify for the zero rate.³ That date moves forward by one year each April.

Even at zero, you still have to apply for the tax; an untaxed vehicle on the road is illegal regardless of the amount owed. You can apply for the historic tax class in the same Post Office visit where you hand in the V112, so both are dealt with in one trip.

You Are Still Responsible for Roadworthiness

Exemption from the test does not exempt you from the law behind it. Every time the vehicle is on a public road, you are required to keep it in a roadworthy condition. Police can stop any vehicle for a roadside check, and driving one in a dangerous condition can bring a fine of up to £2,500 and three penalty points, whether the vehicle is 5 years old or 50.³ The areas that matter are the ones an MOT would check: brakes, tyres, lights, steering, suspension, and structural integrity. Classic vehicles are especially prone to corrosion, degrading brake components, and perished rubber in suspension bushings, and without an annual test the responsibility for catching those falls on you.

Booking a Voluntary MOT

Nothing stops you from booking an MOT even though your vehicle is exempt. Many classic owners do, treating it as a professional health check and using the certificate to reassure insurers or buyers. The test is the same as the standard MOT and available at any approved station. A fail on a voluntary test carries no legal penalty, because the vehicle was not required to pass, but it does flag problems worth fixing before your next drive.

1
GOV.UK. Getting an MOT – Vehicles That Do Not Need an MOT
2
GOV.UK. Declaration of Exemption From MOT (V112)
3
GOV.UK. Historic (Classic) Vehicles – MOT and Vehicle Tax
4
The Military Vehicle Trust. Tax and MOT
5
GOV.UK. Historic (Classic) Vehicles – MOT Exemption Criteria
6
GOV.UK. Historic (Classic) Vehicles – Apply for a Vehicle Tax Exemption