In a new alert this week the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has told many drivers they’ll be hit with extra charges in just over two months’ time. It comes as many motorists will have to pay more car tax from April, when the new Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) rates kick in.
On its website, DVLA explains that as of April 1 “registered keepers of electric, zero or low emission cars, vans and motorcycles will need to pay vehicle tax in the same way as registered keepers of petrol and diesel vehicles”. The change, it adds, will apply to both new and existing vehicles.
In a new update on X, formerly Twitter, DVLA said: “From 1 April 2025, vehicle tax is changing for electric and low emission vehicles. See how these changes affect you.”
Currently, band A under the existing VED system has a road tax of £0. But from April vehicles in this band will move to a payable rate.
For this type of vehicle, registered on or after April 1, 2025, this will be a fee of £10. From the second payment, this will jump up to £195.
For electric, zero or low-emission cars registered between April 1, 2017, and March 31, 2025, a £195 rate will apply. Additionally, a £20 fee will be applicable for electric, zero or low-emission cars registered between March 1, 2001, and March 31, 2017.
An extra charge is added for “expensive cars”. This means that new electric and zero emission vehicles registered on or after April 1, 2025, with the list price exceeding £40,000 “will attract the standard rate, plus the expensive car supplement” – an additional £410 in VED annually for the first five years of ownership.
Further DVLA guidance explains the £10 annual discount for hybrid and alternatively fuelled vehicles (AFVs) will be removed, and “the rate you will pay will depend on when the vehicle was first registered”. For those registered before April 1, 2017, the “rate will depend on the vehicle’s CO2 emissions”.
Owners of AFVs registered on or after April 1, 2017, will be charged the £195 standard rate. Most electric vans will move to the standard annual rate for light goods vehicles, and most electric motorcycles and tricycles will move to the annual rate for the smallest engine size.