Will my car pay the ULEZ
or a clean air zone?
Type the reg to see which UK zones would charge the car, how much and when: London’s ULEZ, Birmingham, Bristol, Oxford and Scotland’s low emission zones. From the fuel and Euro emissions standard on DVLA’s record, with each zone’s official checker as the final word.
Checked 6 November 2026 against each zone’s official pages
The zones that can charge a car
Five places charge private cars: London, Birmingham, Bristol and Scotland’s four cities if the car doesn’t meet their standard, and Oxford’s zero emission zone every car that isn’t zero emission. To meet the standard, a petrol car needs Euro 4 and a diesel Euro 6. Scotland’s zones have no charge you can pay: a car below the standard gets a penalty instead.
| Zone | Where | Cars must meet | Charge for a car | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) | All London boroughs and the City of London. The M25 isn’t in the zone. | Petrol Euro 4, diesel Euro 6 | £12.50 a day | 24 hours a day, every day of the year except Christmas Day. Each charge day runs from midnight to midnight. |
| Birmingham Clean Air Zone | Inside Birmingham’s A4540 Middleway, but not on the Middleway itself. | Petrol Euro 4, diesel Euro 6 | £8 a day | A daily charge, from midnight to midnight. Motorbikes don’t pay. |
| Bristol Clean Air Zone | A small zone in Bristol: the council’s map shows exactly where. | Petrol Euro 4, diesel Euro 6 | £9 a day | 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, from midnight to midnight. Motorbikes don’t pay. |
| Oxford Zero Emission Zone | A small pilot zone in Oxford city centre. A wider zone has been proposed, with no start date yet. | Every car that isn’t zero emission pays | Zero emission (0 g/km CO2) £0; Under 75 g/km CO2 £2; Euro 4 petrol or Euro 6 diesel £4; Any other car £10 | 7am to 7pm, seven days a week, all year round. Every petrol, diesel and hybrid car pays unless it has an exemption. |
| Scotland’s low emission zones | Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow city centres. | Petrol Euro 4, diesel Euro 6 | No charge: a penalty of £60 (£30 if paid within 14 days). It doubles each time the same car is driven in the same zone within 90 days, up to £480 for a car. | 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, including public holidays. |
Zones that don’t charge private cars
- Bath: Cars and motorbikes aren’t charged, unless it’s a taxi or private hire vehicle.
- Bradford: Cars and motorbikes don’t pay. Taxis, vans, buses and motorhomes might.
- Portsmouth: Private cars and vans aren’t charged.
- Sheffield: Cars aren’t charged, unless it’s a taxi or private hire vehicle.
- Newcastle and Gateshead: Privately owned cars aren’t charged.
- York: Only for local buses. Private cars and taxis aren’t affected.
We found no clean air zone in Wales. Cardiff’s air quality plan uses measures that don’t charge drivers.
How the checker works
Type a reg and we read the car’s fuel, first registration date and Euro emissions standard from DVLA’s vehicle record. DVLA’s record holds the Euro standard given when the car was first registered, and doesn’t have it for every car.
When it’s missing, we go by the date the car was first registered and say it’s likely, never certain. Bristol City Council’s guide puts Euro 4 petrol cars at about 2006 or newer, and the Vehicle Certification Agency says Euro 6 was introduced for most new registrations in September 2015. TfL says the ULEZ goes by the emissions a car was made to, not its age, so the official checkers are always the final word.
This checker is for private cars. Zones charge vans, motorbikes, taxis, private hire vehicles and bigger vehicles differently, and some have exemptions, for example for some vehicles used by disabled people. The Used Car Buyers isn’t part of DVLA, DVSA or GOV.UK, TfL or any council.
The official checkers
- London ULEZ: TfL’s vehicle checker
- Bath, Birmingham, Bradford, Bristol, Portsmouth, Sheffield, Newcastle and Gateshead: GOV.UK
- Scotland: Low Emission Zones Scotland checker
- Oxford: Oxfordshire County Council
Questions people ask
Does my car have to pay the ULEZ?
Not if it meets the standard: Euro 4 for a petrol car, Euro 6 for a diesel. If it doesn’t, it’s £12.50 a day to drive in the zone, which covers all London boroughs. TfL’s vehicle checker is the final word.
How much is the ULEZ charge, and when does it apply?
£12.50 a day, 24 hours a day, every day of the year except Christmas Day. Each charge day runs from midnight to midnight. If it isn’t paid, TfL can send a £180 penalty charge (£90 if paid within 14 days).
Which petrol cars meet Euro 4?
Bristol City Council’s guide puts Euro 4 petrol cars at about 2006 or newer. The zones go by the standard a car was made to, not its age, so a petrol car first registered before 2006 is worth checking on the official checker.
Which diesel cars meet Euro 6?
The Vehicle Certification Agency says Euro 6 was introduced for most new registrations in September 2015, so diesel cars first registered from then generally meet it. Older diesels may not: check the official checker.
Do electric and hybrid cars pay?
A fully electric car has no petrol or diesel engine for the standards to apply to: Birmingham says fully electric cars aren’t charged, and Oxford charges a zero emission car £0. A hybrid has to meet the standard for its engine, Euro 4 petrol or Euro 6 diesel, and Oxford’s zero emission zone charges hybrids too.
Do private cars pay in Bath, Bradford, Portsmouth, Sheffield or Newcastle?
No. Those clean air zones charge some other vehicles, such as older taxis, buses and lorries, but not private cars. York’s zone is for local buses only.
Can I pay to drive in Scotland’s low emission zones?
No. Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow have no daily charge. A car that doesn’t meet the standard gets a £60 penalty charge (£30 if paid within 14 days), which doubles each time it’s driven in the same zone within 90 days, up to £480.
Is there a clean air zone in Wales?
We found none. Cardiff’s air quality plan uses measures that don’t charge drivers.
Sources
- TfL: Ultra Low Emission Zone
- TfL: ULEZ, where and when
- TfL: ULEZ standards for cars
- TfL: penalty charges for ULEZ
- Brum Breathes (Birmingham City Council): charges and paying
- Brum Breathes: will I be charged?
- Bristol City Council: charges and vehicle checker
- Bristol City Council: pay the daily charge
- Oxfordshire County Council: charges for Oxford’s zero emission zone
- Oxfordshire County Council: about the zero emission zone
- Oxfordshire County Council: proposed wider zero emission zone
- mygov.scot: Low Emission Zones in Scotland
- mygov.scot: fines for Low Emission Zones
- mygov.scot: vehicle exemptions for Low Emission Zones
- The Low Emission Zones (Emission Standards, Exemptions and Enforcement) (Scotland) Regulations 2021: policy note
- Bath & North East Somerset Council: check your vehicle and pay the charge
- City of Bradford Council: what is the Clean Air Zone and how does it work?
- Cleaner Air Portsmouth (Portsmouth City Council): Clean Air Zone
- Sheffield City Council: Clean Air Zone charges and how to pay
- Breathe Clean Air (Newcastle and Gateshead councils)
- City of York Council: Clean Air Zone for buses
- Welsh Government: Cardiff’s air quality plan (January 2020)
- GOV.UK: driving in a clean air zone
- Vehicle Certification Agency: Euro 6 and new registrations
- DVLA: Vehicle Enquiry Service (what the Euro status on the record is)
General information from each zone’s official pages, checked on 6 November 2026. Charges and zones can change, so check the official checker before you drive in.
The car look-up contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
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