Is a diesel from 2018 old enough to matter in Lyon?

No. Lyon writes its cut-off as a registration date: diesel cars first registered on or after 1 January 2011 hold Crit'Air 2 or better and are admitted. A 2018 Euro 6 diesel is seven years inside that line.

What does it cost if the vignette is missing?

EUR 68 for a car, motorcycle or light van, and EUR 135 for a lorry, bus or coach. The car being compliant is not a defence - the vignette is how the camera knows.

Can I buy the Crit'Air sticker at the border or on arrival?

No. It comes only from certificat-air.gouv.fr at EUR 5.11, and international delivery takes two to three weeks, so order it well before you travel. Resellers charging EUR 20 or more are not official.

Does the ZFE run at night and at weekends?

Yes, 24 hours a day, every day, and there is no transit exemption. Being inside the perimeter at all is what counts - including on the M6 and M7, which have been inside the zone since 1 January 2024.

Are electric and plug-in hybrid cars exempt?

Electric and hydrogen cars hold Crit'Air 0 and most plug-in hybrids Crit'Air 1, so both are admitted - but they still need the vignette itself. Exempt from the restriction is not the same as exempt from the sticker.

Lyon ZFE 2026: A 2018 Euro 6 Diesel Rates Crit'Air 2

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

Since 1 January 2025 Lyon has refused Crit’Air 3, 4, 5 and unclassified vehicles — in plain terms, diesels first registered before 2011. A 2018 Euro 6 diesel is Crit’Air 2 and drives in, provided the EUR 5.11 vignette is on the windscreen.

Can your car enter Lyon?

Enter your vehicle's fuel + Euro class → instant verdict for Lyon (ZFE). Fine if wrong: EUR 68 (cars, motorcycles, light commercial), EUR 135 (HGV, buses, coaches).

Check now

Why this car is not the one Lyon is aiming at

The step drivers still expect “sometime in 2026” already happened. On 1 January 2025 the Métropole de Lyon began refusing Crit’Air 3 and everything below it, which translates into a diesel registration cut-off of 1 January 2011 and a petrol cut-off of 1 January 2006. A diesel built to Euro 6 and registered in 2018 holds Crit’Air 2 — the best sticker a diesel can hold — so no tightening announced so far reaches it.

The vignette is the only real errand

Meeting the standard and getting past the camera are two different things in France. The plate is checked against the Crit’Air register, so an unregistered compliant car looks exactly like a non-compliant one.

Order from certificat-air.gouv.fr — EUR 5.11, the only official source. Allow two to three weeks for international post.
Work from the registration document, not the model year: the Euro class printed on the papers is what sets the Crit’Air class.
Ignore resellers charging EUR 20 and up; the official price has not moved.

What the ticket looks like

Driving inside the ZFE-m without a valid vignette costs EUR 68 for a car, motorcycle or light van, and EUR 135 for a lorry, bus or coach. Enforcement is ANPR cameras plus police spot checks, running day and night, and a fine is issued per entry rather than per day.

The perimeter is bigger than the old town

The zone covers Lyon, Caluire-et-Cuire and the parts of Villeurbanne, Bron and Vénissieux inside the Laurent Bonnevay ring, and since 1 January 2024 it also takes in the M6 and M7. That last point catches people out: you can be inside the ZFE without ever leaving a motorway.

Quick compliance checklist for Lyon

✅ Diesel registered from 1 January 2011 — this 2018 car qualifies as Crit’Air 2
✅ Vignette ordered from certificat-air.gouv.fr (EUR 5.11), allowing three weeks
✅ Remember the M6 and M7 sit inside the perimeter
✅ EUR 68 is the risk if the sticker never arrives, not because the car is wrong