UK Clean Air Zones 2026: No Sticker, £12.50, £180 Fine
Britain issues no emission sticker: cameras read the plate and bill it. London's ULEZ is £12.50 a day, and a missed payment becomes £180, £90 in 14 days.
UK Clean Air Zones use no sticker — ANPR cameras read your plate — and London's ULEZ charges £12.50 a day, rising to a £180 penalty, halved to £90 if paid within 14 days.
A British Clean Air Zone never asks you to display anything, which is the difference that catches drivers arriving from mainland Europe: cameras read the plate and check it against the DVLA, or against an online registration if the car is foreign. London’s ULEZ wants Euro 4 petrol or Euro 6 diesel and charges a non-compliant car £12.50 a day; miss the payment and it becomes £180, reduced to £90 within 14 days. Other cities set their own daily rates and most charge only vans, taxis, buses and lorries, with Birmingham and Bristol the ones that also charge private cars.
Check your exact vehicle with the Emission Zone Checker, or browse every in-force UK zone below — each links to that city’s full rules.
| City / Zone | Type | Min petrol | Min diesel | Fine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen | LEZ | Euro 4 | Euro 6 | GBP 60, reduced to GBP 30 if paid within 14 days; doubles for each further breach by the same vehicle in the same LEZ within 90 days, capped at GBP 480 for cars and LGVs and GBP 960 for minibuses, buses, coaches and HGVs |
| Bath | CAZ | Euro 4 | Euro 6 | GBP 120, reduced to GBP 60 if paid within 14 days of service and raised to GBP 180 if unpaid after 28 days — commercial vehicles only; cars and motorcycles are never charged |
| Birmingham | CAZ | Euro 4 | Euro 6 | GBP 120 |
| Bradford | CAZ | — | — | GBP 120 (GBP 60 if paid within 14 days), plus the unpaid daily charge |
| Bradford | CAZ | — | — | GBP 120 penalty charge, reduced to GBP 60 if paid within 14 days, plus the outstanding daily charge |
| Bristol | CAZ | Euro 4 | Euro 6 | GBP 120 |
| Dundee | LEZ | Euro 4 | Euro 6 | GBP 60 first breach (GBP 30 within 14 days), doubling each repeat within 90 days; cap GBP 480 cars and LGVs, GBP 960 minibuses, buses, coaches and HGVs |
| Edinburgh | LEZ | Euro 4 | Euro 6 | GBP60 penalty charge (reduced to GBP30 if paid within 14 days); doubles on each subsequent breach, capped at GBP480 for cars/LGVs (GBP960 buses/HGVs). No daily charge - it is an enforcement penalty, not an access fee. |
| Edinburgh | LEZ | Euro 4 | Euro 6 | GBP60 penalty charge (reduced to GBP30 if paid within 14 days); doubles on each subsequent breach, capped at GBP480 for cars/LGVs (GBP960 buses/HGVs). No daily charge - it is an enforcement penalty, not an access fee. |
| Glasgow | LEZ | Euro 4 | Euro 6 | GBP 60 first breach (GBP 30 within 14 days), doubling each repeat within 90 days; cap GBP 480 cars and LGVs, GBP 960 minibuses, buses, coaches and HGVs |
| London | CC | Euro 4 | Euro 6 | GBP 18/day if paid on the day of travel or in advance; GBP 21 if paid by midnight of the third day after travel; GBP 180 penalty for non-payment (GBP 90 within 14 days) |
| London | ULEZ | Euro 4 | Euro 6 | GBP 12.50/day (GBP 180 penalty, GBP 90 within 14 days) |
| Newcastle | CAZ | Euro 4 | Euro 6 | GBP 120 (GBP 60 if paid within 14 days), plus the original CAZ charge |
| Oxford | ZEZ | Euro 6 | Euro 6 | GBP 60 (GBP 30 if paid within 14 days); 28 days from service to pay or challenge |
| Portsmouth | CAZ | — | Euro 6 | Up to GBP 120 (GBP 60 if paid within 14 days), plus the original CAZ charge |
| Sheffield | CAZ | — | Euro 6 | GBP 120 (GBP 60 if paid within 14 days), plus the unpaid daily charge |
| Sheffield | CAZ | — | Euro 6 | GBP 120 (GBP 60 if paid within 14 days), plus the unpaid daily charge |
| York | CAZ | — | — | No charge or penalty for cars; the zone applies to local bus services only |
18 zones currently in force · verified against official sources. Click any city for its full rules and the exact sticker or permit.
How UK Clean Air Zones work
The UK system is camera-enforced, not sticker-based — the single biggest difference from mainland Europe, and the thing visitors get caught by. There is nothing to display; cameras check your plate against the DVLA (or, for foreign cars, an online registration). London’s ULEZ covers everything inside the M25 and needs Euro 4 petrol / Euro 6 diesel. Other cities run Clean Air Zones (CAZ) in classes A–D, and most only charge older vans, taxis, buses and HGVs — but Birmingham and Bristol also charge private cars.
If you drive a non-compliant car, pay the daily charge online by midnight on the third day after you travel. Rental cars are usually compliant, but confirm at pickup.
Before you drive
- Check whether your car meets Euro 4 petrol / Euro 6 diesel (or the local CAZ class).
- If not, pay the daily charge online — there is no sticker and no booth.
- Don’t assume “just passing through” is free: the charge applies the moment you enter.
For mainland rules, see our emission zones in France and Germany guides, or the full State of Europe’s Emission Zones 2026 report.
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Frequently Asked Questions
No. Unlike Germany or France, the UK uses no sticker or vignette. ANPR cameras read your number plate automatically and check it against the DVLA database. A non-compliant vehicle is charged a daily fee; foreign vehicles must pay online.
A non-compliant car pays £12.50 per day. Miss the payment and the penalty rises to £180 (reduced to £90 if paid within 14 days). The minimum standard is Euro 4 petrol / Euro 6 diesel.
London (ULEZ), plus Clean Air Zones in Birmingham, Bristol, Bath, Sheffield, Bradford, Portsmouth, Tyneside and others, and a Low Emission Zone in Glasgow. The full in-force list with each city's charge is in the table below.