Electric cars: is it true there is no tax and free parking?

"Buy an electric car and you pay no tax, and parking is free" is still how the subject gets discussed. Checked against the official rates, almost none of it survives.

Do electric cars pay vehicle tax?

Yes. A zero-emission car pays £10 for the first year after registration, then the standard rate from the second year: £200 for a single 12-month payment, or £210 by monthly Direct Debit. Six months costs £110, or £105 by Direct Debit. The gap with a petrol car exists only in year one.

ONLYWAY NEWSLIVELife · 12.11The red phone box: who designed it and why it cannot be removedLaw · 12.11Fines for littering in England: £100 by default, up to £500 by councilLife · 12.11Why the queue is sacred: the unwritten rules of British etiquetteMoney · 12.11New UK taxes: what has been passed and what is still plannedLife · 12.11Dancing and meeting people after 50: where to go and what is freeMoney · 12.11£1 houses and money for moving north: what is actually trueMoney · 12.11Electric cars: is it true there is no tax and free parking?Money · 12.11Time limits on debt: when a creditor can no longer sueLaw · 12.11Applying for probate in England and Wales: fees and how to applyMarkets · 12.11UK fuel prices: petrol 167.7p, diesel 197p — weekly reviewONLYWAY NEWS · appInstall the ONLYWAY NEWS appFresh UK news, classifieds, key dates and exchange rates on your home screen, one tap away. Free.NewsClassifiedsCalendarRates

The expensive car supplement

If the list price is above £50,000, an extra £440 a year applies on top of the standard rate, for five years, counted from the second time the vehicle is taxed — £640 a year in total on a single payment, or £672 monthly. It applies to electric vehicles registered between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026; zero-emission vehicles registered before 1 April 2025 are exempt.

List price means the published price before registration and before any discounts, so a car bought at £48,000 with a £52,000 list price still pays.

The London Congestion Charge

The full exemption is gone. Transport for London's own page marks the Cleaner Vehicle Discount — which gave 100% off to battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles — as discontinued from 25 December 2025. After that, drivers pay on the same terms as everyone else unless another discount or exemption applies.

TfL gives the charge as £15 a day, 07:00–18:00 Monday to Friday and 12:00–18:00 at weekends and on bank holidays, with no charge between Christmas Day and the New Year's Day bank holiday. The scheme is under review, so check the current rate before travelling.

What does survive is ULEZ: an electric car meets the standard and pays no ULEZ charge.

Free parking is a myth

There is no national rule. Parking charges are set by each local council: some offer free or discounted bays at chargepoints or a cheaper resident permit, others charge an electric car exactly what they charge anyone else. "Free" always means "free in that borough".

What is actually left

The advantage has moved from tax to running costs: £10 in the first year, no ULEZ charge, and electricity instead of fuel. But vehicle tax is ordinary from year two, the Congestion Charge now applies, and above a £50,000 list price there is £440 a year for five years on top.