Registration & Paperwork

Are imported cars ULEZ compliant?

Not automatically. An imported car pays £12.50 a day in London unless it meets Euro 4 (petrol) or Euro 6 (diesel), was built before 1 January 1973, or is over 40 years old and in DVLA’s historic vehicle tax class. That is the same on foreign plates and on UK plates.

Published 8 October 2026 · 5 min read

Bringing a car to London? Get a free quote to import your car →

1. What standard must an imported car meet?

The Ultra Low Emission Zone covers every London borough, 24 hours a day, every day except Christmas Day (TfL, ULEZ for cars). A petrol car needs Euro 4 for nitrogen oxides, and a diesel car needs Euro 6. TfL enforces the zone on the declared emissions of the vehicle rather than its age, but petrol cars that meet the standard are generally those first registered as new after 2005, and diesels those first registered after September 2015.

A day runs from midnight to midnight, so a drive that crosses midnight inside the zone costs two charges. Driving every weekday would cost £62.50 a week. Miss the payment and the penalty charge is £180, reduced to £90 if you pay within 14 days (TfL).

2. Does the ULEZ apply to cars on foreign plates?

Yes. TfL says vehicles registered outside the UK need to meet the emissions standards when driving in London, or pay a daily charge (TfL, non-UK vehicles). The difference is information. For a UK-registered car TfL can look up the details, but for a foreign-plated car it does not hold them, so it cannot know whether the car meets the standard.

If you think your car meets the standard, or is exempt, you register it with TfL. It sends an email with the result, which can take up to 10 working days. Until the car is accepted you pay the charge, or risk a penalty charge notice, and you can apply for a refund once the status is confirmed. This is a different job from registering the car with DVLA. A car that will live in the UK still needs NOVA and DVLA registration, as in our guide to a car on foreign plates that was never registered.

3. Are Japanese imports ULEZ compliant?

It depends on the car and on the paperwork. In an answer to a freedom of information request published on 28 April 2026, TfL said that for a vehicle imported from Japan it requires suitable evidence that the car meets the standard. It accepts a Certificate of Conformity issued by the vehicle manufacturer, or a letter from the manufacturer’s homologation department confirming the specific vehicle’s emissions performance. It will not accept an independent Certificate of Conformity, and when no acceptable evidence can be provided the vehicle is classed as non-compliant (TfL, FOI-4719-2526).

That is the part the TfL ULEZ pages do not tell you. A Japanese car that looks clean on paper can still be charged £12.50 a day because nobody can show the standard it was built to. It is worth asking the seller what documents exist for the exact car, before you buy it. If you want the manufacturer’s Certificate of Conformity, we obtain it for you. Our Certificate of Conformity guide explains what it covers, and our Japan import guide covers duty and VAT.

4. Which classic cars are exempt from the ULEZ?

Two groups of historic vehicles are exempt: every vehicle built before 1 January 1973, and every vehicle over 40 years old that has been successfully registered with DVLA for a historic vehicle tax class (TfL, discounts and exemptions). A UK-registered car that qualifies is exempt automatically. A foreign-registered car that qualifies is exempt too, but you must register it with TfL.

The 40-year exemption is not automatic. You apply to DVLA for the historic tax class, and it is not available if the vehicle is used for business (GOV.UK, historic vehicles). Our historic vehicle tax checker shows whether a car qualifies. A car that is 38 years old does not qualify yet, so it pays the charge if it fails Euro 4 or Euro 6.

5. What should you check before buying an import for London?

Work through these before you pay for the car:

1. Find the fuel and the date of first registration on the foreign registration document.
2. Compare them with the table above, or run the ULEZ checker.
3. If the car sits close to the line (a petrol car from 2001 to 2005, or a diesel from 2015), ask what the manufacturer can document for that exact car.
4. If the car was built for Japan or another market outside Europe, ask for the Euro standard in writing.
5. If it will be exempt as a classic, check whether it is under 40 years old, because then there is no exemption yet.

Once the car lands, HMRC must be told through NOVA within 14 days (GOV.UK). We prepare every DVLA form, you just sign and post.