Will EV Owners Pay Per Mile Road Tax in the Future?
The government has confirmed a 3p per mile EV road tax from April 2028, here is what it means and how much it will cost
Quick answers
- Yes, EV owners will pay a mileage-based road tax from April 2028. The government confirmed in the 2025 Budget that a new Electric Vehicle Excise Duty (eVED) will launch at 3p per mile for battery electric cars and 1.5p per mile for plug-in hybrids.
- What is eVED and when does it start: Electric Vehicle Excise Duty (eVED) is a distance-based tax for zero-emission and plug-in hybrid cars.
- How much will eVED actually cost: The UK average annual mileage is around 7,400 miles per year (DfT figures), so a typical EV driver would pay roughly £222 per year in eVED from 2028.
- Why is the government introducing eVED: The rationale is straightforward: fuel duty raises approximately £25 billion per year for the Treasury.
- What VED do EVs pay right now: The £50,000 threshold for the Expensive Car Supplement (also called the luxury car tax) was raised specifically for EVs in November 2025 from £40,000 to £50,000, recognising that battery costs make EVs more expensive to manufacture and that a flat £40,000 threshold caught a disproportionately large share of the EV market.
- The counterargument is that EVs also benefit from lower energy costs (electricity is taxed at 5% VAT versus 20% VAT on petrol), and that the Expensive Car Supplement and flat VED are already increasing EV tax burdens.
Yes, EV owners will pay a mileage-based road tax from April 2028. The government confirmed in the 2025 Budget that a new Electric Vehicle Excise Duty (eVED) will launch at 3p per mile for battery electric cars and 1.5p per mile for plug-in hybrids. A consultation on the scheme closed in March 2026 and implementation is set for the 2028/29 tax year. On top of eVED, electric cars already pay standard Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) since April 2025: £10 in year one and £200 per year from year two.
What is eVED and when does it start?
Electric Vehicle Excise Duty (eVED) is a distance-based tax for zero-emission and plug-in hybrid cars. Unlike standard VED, which is a flat annual fee, eVED scales with the miles you drive. Key confirmed details:
| Parameter | Detail |
|---|---|
| Start date | April 2028 |
| Rate for BEVs | 3p per mile |
| Rate for PHEVs | 1.5p per mile |
| Administrator | DVLA |
| Mileage verification | Annual MOT |
| How you pay | Estimate annual mileage upfront; reconcile actual mileage at year-end |
The government’s consultation on implementation closed on 18 March 2026. Final regulations are expected to be published before the 2027/28 financial year to give drivers time to prepare.
How much will eVED actually cost?
At 3p per mile, the annual eVED bill depends directly on how much you drive:
| Annual mileage | eVED cost (BEV at 3p/mile) | eVED cost (PHEV at 1.5p/mile) |
|---|---|---|
| 5,000 miles | £150 | £75 |
| 8,000 miles | £240 | £120 |
| 10,000 miles | £300 | £150 |
| 12,000 miles | £360 | £180 |
| 15,000 miles | £450 | £225 |
| 20,000 miles | £600 | £300 |
The UK average annual mileage is around 7,400 miles per year (DfT figures), so a typical EV driver would pay roughly £222 per year in eVED from 2028. Adding the standard VED of £200 per year, total annual road tax for a typical EV driver from 2028 would be around £422.
For context, a petrol car emitting 110g/km of CO2 currently pays £190 per year in standard VED (for cars registered from April 2017 onwards); a high-emission petrol car emitting over 255g/km pays £2,745 in the first year. EV road tax costs, even with eVED added, will remain lower than high-emission petrol cars.
Why is the government introducing eVED?
The rationale is straightforward: fuel duty raises approximately £25 billion per year for the Treasury. As more cars become electric, petrol and diesel consumption falls and fuel duty revenue shrinks. The OBR (Office for Budget Responsibility) projects a significant funding gap in the mid-2030s as EVs become dominant. eVED is designed to ensure zero-emission vehicle owners contribute to road maintenance and public finances in proportion to their road use, as ICE drivers do through fuel duty.
The OBR estimated eVED will raise £1.1 billion in 2028/29, rising to £1.9 billion by 2030/31 as the EV fleet grows. The OBR also forecasted that eVED would result in approximately 440,000 fewer EVs being sold by end of 2031 compared with a no-eVED scenario, as some prospective buyers are deterred by the additional cost. This is a policy trade-off the government has accepted.
What VED do EVs pay right now?
Free road tax for electric cars ended on 1 April 2025. Since that date, EVs pay:
| Circumstance | Annual VED cost |
|---|---|
| New EV registered from 1 April 2025 (year one) | £10 |
| New EV from year two onwards | £200 |
| EV listed over £50,000 (year two to six) | £200 + £440 supplement = £640 |
| EV registered before 1 April 2017 | £20 |
| EV registered April 2017 to March 2025 | £0 (transitional, moving to £200) |
The £50,000 threshold for the Expensive Car Supplement (also called the luxury car tax) was raised specifically for EVs in November 2025 from £40,000 to £50,000, recognising that battery costs make EVs more expensive to manufacture and that a flat £40,000 threshold caught a disproportionately large share of the EV market. At £50,000, models including the Tesla Model 3, MG4, Volkswagen ID.3 and most sub-£50,000 EVs avoid the supplement.
How will eVED be collected?
The government’s proposed system requires drivers to:
- Estimate their annual mileage at the start of each tax year and pay eVED upfront (or in instalments) based on that estimate
- Submit their actual mileage at their annual MOT
- Receive a rebate or pay additional tax based on the difference between estimated and actual mileage
The DVLA will administer the scheme. The MOT check as the mileage verification point is administratively convenient but creates a gap for pre-2028 vehicles that are exempt from MOTs (vehicles less than three years old). Final rules on how these cases will be handled have not been published.
Is eVED fair compared with petrol car taxation?
This is genuinely debated. Petrol car drivers pay fuel duty at 52.95p per litre (as of 2026), which at a typical fuel economy of 35mpg equates to roughly 8p per mile in duty alone, before VAT on the fuel. An EV driver will pay 3p per mile in eVED from 2028. On a pure per-mile duty basis, EV drivers will still pay significantly less than petrol car drivers even after eVED launches.
The counterargument is that EVs also benefit from lower energy costs (electricity is taxed at 5% VAT versus 20% VAT on petrol), and that the Expensive Car Supplement and flat VED are already increasing EV tax burdens. Some in the industry have argued that eVED, added to existing VED, tips the total tax burden on EV drivers closer to parity with petrol cars when all costs are summed.
What about high-mileage drivers and fleet vehicles?
Fleet vehicles typically cover much higher annual mileages than private cars. A company van or sales rep car doing 30,000 miles per year would pay £900 in eVED from 2028 on top of standard VED. This is a material operating cost that will affect fleet total cost of ownership calculations. Fleet operators should model eVED into their financial planning for any EVs that will be in service post-April 2028.
Will eVED affect the EV market?
The OBR’s projection of 440,000 fewer EVs sold by 2031 as a result of eVED suggests real demand impact, though the figure needs context: the total EV market in the UK is currently running at around 350,000 new registrations per year and is expected to grow substantially. A 440,000 reduction spread over three years amounts to roughly 150,000 fewer per year, or around 40% of current annual sales pace. This is a significant projected effect and has drawn criticism from the EV industry, though the government has proceeded regardless.
What to read next
For the full tax position on electric cars in 2026 including VED, Benefit in Kind and salary sacrifice, see our overview at the grants, policy and legislation hub.
For the best value EVs that also qualify for purchase grants, see our guide to best value EVs that qualify for UK grants.
How we test and where our numbers come from
Range figures are official WLTP combined values taken from manufacturer UK specification pages, with real-world estimates drawn from independent comparative testing. Prices are UK list prices at the time of the latest update. Tax, grant and charging-scheme figures come from GOV.UK and HMRC publications. We re-check every guide when pricing, specification or policy changes. Last checked 11 August 2026.
Frequently asked questions
What is eVED and when does it start?
Electric Vehicle Excise Duty (eVED) is a distance-based tax for zero-emission and plug-in hybrid cars. Unlike standard VED, which is a flat annual fee, eVED scales with the miles you drive.
How much will eVED actually cost?
The UK average annual mileage is around 7,400 miles per year (DfT figures), so a typical EV driver would pay roughly £222 per year in eVED from 2028. Adding the standard VED of £200 per year, total annual road tax for a typical EV driver from 2028 would be around £422.
Why is the government introducing eVED?
The rationale is straightforward: fuel duty raises approximately £25 billion per year for the Treasury. As more cars become electric, petrol and diesel consumption falls and fuel duty revenue shrinks.
What VED do EVs pay right now?
The £50,000 threshold for the Expensive Car Supplement (also called the luxury car tax) was raised specifically for EVs in November 2025 from £40,000 to £50,000, recognising that battery costs make EVs more expensive to manufacture and that a flat £40,000 threshold caught a disproportionately large share of the EV market.
How will eVED be collected?
The DVLA will administer the scheme. The MOT check as the mileage verification point is administratively convenient but creates a gap for pre-2028 vehicles that are exempt from MOTs (vehicles less than three years old).
Sources and further reading
- commonslibrary.parliament.ukHouse of Commons LibraryPrimary source referenced in this article.
EV Compared
The EV Compared editorial team tracks the UK electric vehicle market full time: new model launches, list prices, WLTP and real-world range, public charging tariffs and the tax rules that decide what an EV actually costs to run. Every guide is checked against manufacturer specifications and official GOV.UK figures, and updated whenever the numbers move.
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