Was Euro 5 diesel supposed to be banned in Antwerp by now?

Yes. The Flemish roadmap had Euro 6 diesel and Euro 3 petrol as the minimums from 1 January 2026, and the Flemish Government scrapped that step on 28 November 2025. Antwerp therefore still admits Euro 5 diesel in 2026.

Do I need to register even though my car is compliant?

Yes. Antwerp reads plates rather than stickers, and a foreign-registered car has to be entered once, free of charge, at slimnaarantwerpen.be - at the latest the day after you drive in. Dutch plates are the exception: the city pulls them automatically from the RDW register.

What does an unregistered entry cost?

EUR 150 for a first offence, EUR 250 for a second within 12 months and EUR 350 for a third or later one in that window. The notice always arrives by post; the city warns that any payment demand by SMS or WhatsApp is a scam.

How far does the zone reach?

The city centre plus part of Linkeroever, enforced by ANPR cameras around the clock. There is no toll and no daily charge - compliant and registered means unlimited free entry.

Does the same registration work in Ghent and Brussels?

Ghent yes, Brussels no. One free Flemish registration admits you to every low emission zone in Flanders, but Brussels runs its own system - and it has refused Euro 5 diesel since 1 January 2026, so this car needs a day pass or a park-and-ride there.

Antwerp 2026: Euro 5 Diesel Stays In, Ban Scrapped

Checked against official sources 19 Sep 2026 · Next review 2026-12-18

Antwerp was due to raise its diesel floor to Euro 6 on 1 January 2026, which would have shut this 2018 Euro 5 car out. The Flemish Government scrapped that step on 28 November 2025, so the floor stays at Euro 5 — register the plate, free, and drive in.

Can your car enter Antwerp?

Enter your vehicle's fuel + Euro class → instant verdict for Antwerp (LEZ). Fine if wrong: EUR 150 first offence; EUR 250 second within 12 months; EUR 350 third and later within 12 months.

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A verdict that was about to flip, and then didn’t

For most of 2025 this page would have ended differently. The Flemish low emission zone roadmap set Euro 6 diesel and Euro 3 petrol as the minimums from 1 January 2026, and Antwerp was going to apply it. On 28 November 2025 the Flemish Government dropped the step, leaving the city where it has been since 2020: diesel Euro 5, petrol Euro 2. A diesel registered in 2018 to Euro 5 therefore enters legally, today.

Brussels made the opposite choice and has refused Euro 5 diesel since 1 January 2026, which is why the same car can be waved through in one Belgian city and turned away in another an hour down the E19.

Registration, not a sticker

Antwerp has no windscreen badge. ANPR cameras read the plate and check it against the Flemish register, so a compliant car that was never registered looks identical to a banned one.

Register once at slimnaarantwerpen.be — free, and accepted up to the day after you first drive in.
Dutch plates skip the step — the city pulls them automatically from the RDW register.
Keep the Euro class to hand: it is the figure on the registration document, not the model year, that decides.

The penalty ladder

A first LEZ offence costs EUR 150. A second within 12 months is EUR 250, and a third or later one inside that window is EUR 350. Notices arrive by post — the city warns openly that any demand for payment by SMS or WhatsApp is fraud.

Where the zone actually is

The Antwerp LEZ covers the city centre and part of Linkeroever, not the whole municipality, and it is in force 24 hours a day. There is no toll and no daily charge: once the plate is registered and the car qualifies, entry is unlimited and free.

Planning a Belgian trip with this car

Antwerp and Ghent: one Flemish registration covers both.
Brussels: a separate system, and a closed door for Euro 5 diesel since 1 January 2026 — budget for a day pass or leave the car at a park-and-ride.
The floor could move again: it stands at Euro 5 because a planned step was cancelled, not because the roadmap ended.