London Congestion Charge: everything you need to know
From Christmas 2025, drivers of all vehicles, including electric cars, will have to pay a £15 daily fee. We explain the London Congestion Charge and who has to pay it...
The London Congestion Charge is a daily fee levied on vehicles travelling through the centre of the capital at certain times.
Presently, drivers of most vehicles must pay the £15 a day fee, although zero-emission electric vehicles are exempt
However, from the end of next year, this exemption will be removed, meaning all vehicles, including electric cars, will be liable for the £15 a day fee.
Commenting on the change, a spokesperson for Transport for London said: “The Congestion Charge’s Cleaner Vehicle Discount was part of our phased scheme to tackle London’s toxic air.
“Ending the Cleaner Vehicle Discount from 25 December 2025 will maintain the effectiveness of the Congestion Charge, which is in place to manage traffic and congestion in the heart of London.”
The termination of EV discounts could sting around 100,000 drivers living in and around the capital, it has been estimated. In 2022, there were around 69,000 pure electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids in the capital, and that figure is certain to have increased as people switch to greener cars to avoid emissions-based fees.
The scrapping of the EV exemption from the Congestion Charge is another blow for EV buyers who lost the Plug-in Car Grant incentive for buying new electric models in 2022 and, as of April 2025, will have to pay road tax (VED) just like those who run petrol and diesel cars.
What is the London Congestion Charge?
The London Congestion Charge is a daily fee levied on vehicles travelling through the centre of the capital. In June 2020, its cost was increased to £15 a day (up from £11.50) and the hours of operation changed from 7am to 6pm weekdays to 7am and 10pm every day except Christmas Day.
The costs and operating times were increased partly to combat increasing traffic and pollution levels in the city after the first coronavirus lockdown ended, and also to help Transport for London (TfL) recoup money it had lost in fares during the pandemic. The increase was reported to be temporary, but no end date for it has been announced yet.
The fee was originally introduced in 2003 to reduce traffic and emissions in inner-city areas. In the first three years of its operation, traffic dropped by 15% and congestion fell by 30%. When traffic volumes in the zone were measured in 2018, they were a quarter lower than they had been a decade earlier.
The Congestion Zone covers 1.3% of Greater London, stretching from the City in the east to Marylebone in the west, and from Lambeth in south London to Finsbury north of the River Thames. It covers an area of eight square miles in total.
London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) used to cover the same area, but in August 2023 it expanded to cover almost all of the area inside the M25 motorway, encompassing around 600 square miles of territory, and all 32 London boroughs.
Who has to pay the London Congestion Charge?
The drivers of most cars have to pay the Congestion Charge. The only exemptions are for the following groups of people: residents who applied for a discount before 1 August 2020; drivers with disabilities who have a Blue Badge; local authority, charity and NHS workers and vulnerable patients. The residents’ discount is 90% and the other groups don’t have to pay the charge at all.
There’s currently also a 100% cleaner vehicle discount for drivers of pure electric vehicles. However, from 25 December 2025 this discount is being discontinued.
How do I pay the London Congestion Charge?
If you want to pay for a single journey into the Congestion zone you can do so online at the TfL website, via the TfL app or by calling 0343 222 2222. If you pay the day before your journey, the fee is £15, but it rises to £17.50 if you pay on the same day or by midnight up to three days afterwards. If you leave it any longer than that you’ll be liable for a Fixed Penalty Notice fine of £160, although that's reduced to £80 if it’s paid within 14 days.
If you’re travelling into the Congestion Zone regularly, you can set up an Auto Pay account so the money is taken from your account automatically. If you are in an exempt group or drive a car that qualifies for a discount, you need to register with TfL in advance via the website. There’s an annual fee of £10 for registering your vehicle with TfL and for setting up an Auto Pay account, but doing so gives you the benefit of a £1 discount on the daily fee.
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