How to pay the ULEZ charge and check your car is compliant

The ultra-low emission zone (ULEZ) will be expanding to cover all of Greater London from August 29 this year. 

It comes after the High Court approved the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan’s plan to see drivers with non-compliant vehicles be charged £12.50 a day to drive in the zone. 

Many drivers will see ULEZ signs as they start their venture into the zone, urging them to pay the charge before the deadline to avoid being fined. 

But with the new expansion, some who did not regularly drive within the original boundaries may be asking how to pay the ULEZ charge. 

To avoid getting caught out and paying extra, we’ve come up with a simple explainer to ensure you can pay or check if you have to pay, fuss-free.

How to pay the ULEZ charge

If you drive a non-compliant vehicle in the zone you can pay by midnight on the third day after the journey or up to 90 days in advance. 

The charge is £12.50 for cars, motorcycles, vans and specialist vehicles (up to and including 3.5 tonnes) and minibuses (up to and including 5 tonnes).

You should only pay for the charge via the official website, which is the TfL website you access via this link.

You can also pay automatically every month for any congestion charges and ULEZ charges via Auto Pay.

TfL also has an app which is free and lets you pay the charges, as well as set up the auto-pay option. 

How to check if my vehicle is ULEZ compliant

You can look at the TfL website which lets you enter your number plate and can check for you. 

In order to avoid paying the charge, you need to meet the ULEZ emissions standards, meaning you must meet the required Euro emissions standards for your vehicle and emission type. 

Those standards are: 

• Euro 3 for motorcycles, mopeds, motorised tricycles and quadricycles (L category)
• Euro 4 (NOx) for petrol cars, vans, minibuses and other specialist vehicles
• Euro 6 (NOx and PM) for diesel cars, vans and minibuses and other specialist vehicles

It’s also important to know that for newer vehicles, the Euro emission standard may be listed in section D.2 of your V5C.

Plus, lorries, vans and specialist heavy vehicles over 3.5 tonnes and buses, minibuses and coaches over five tonnes do not need to pay the charge. 

But they will need to pay the Low Emission Zone charge if they do not meet those standards.