HMRC has confirmed the full list of VAT road fuel scale charges for petrol and diesel cars, which will take effect from May 1, 2026, and remain in force until April 30, 2027. These charges apply to businesses that provide fuel for private use in company cars and must be used from the start of the next prescribed accounting period beginning on or after May 1, 2026.
How to Determine the Correct Charge
Businesses need to calculate the correct road fuel charge based on the car's CO2 emissions and the length of the VAT accounting period, which can be one, three, or 12 months. For vehicles registered before March 1, 2001, without a CO2 emissions figure, HMRC advises using engine size to determine the CO2 band: 1,400cc or less falls into band 140; more than 1,400cc but less than 2,000cc uses band 175; and 2,000cc or more uses band 225.
ETA Insurance commented: "Motorists who drive cars that were first registered before 2001 are unlikely to be aware of how much CO2 their vehicle emits. A car's V5 document (sometimes referred to as the logbook) details the amount of CO2 the vehicle emits per kilometre, but this is not the case for vehicles registered before 1st March 2001."
Full List of VAT Road Fuel Scale Charges
The charges are structured by CO2 emissions bands and accounting period lengths. Here is the complete breakdown:
CO2 Emissions: 120g/km or less
- 12 Month Period: £657.00
- 3 Month Period: £163.00
- 1 Month Period: £54.00
CO2 Emissions: 125g/km – 150g/km
- 125g/km: £983.00 (12 months), £246.00 (3 months), £81.00 (1 month)
- 130g/km: £1,051.00 (12 months), £261.00 (3 months), £86.00 (1 month)
- 135g/km: £1,114.00 (12 months), £278.00 (3 months), £92.00 (1 month)
- 140g/km: £1,182.00 (12 months), £294.00 (3 months), £98.00 (1 month)
- 145g/km: £1,245.00 (12 months), £311.00 (3 months), £103.00 (1 month)
- 150g/km: £1,314.00 (12 months), £328.00 (3 months), £109.00 (1 month)
CO2 Emissions: 155g/km – 180g/km
- 155g/km: £1,377.00 (12 months), £344.00 (3 months), £114.00 (1 month)
- 160g/km: £1,445.00 (12 months), £361.00 (3 months), £119.00 (1 month)
- 165g/km: £1,508.00 (12 months), £377.00 (3 months), £125.00 (1 month)
- 170g/km: £1,576.00 (12 months), £393.00 (3 months), £130.00 (1 month)
- 175g/km: £1,640.00 (12 months), £409.00 (3 months), £136.00 (1 month)
- 180g/km: £1,708.00 (12 months), £426.00 (3 months), £142.00 (1 month)
CO2 Emissions: 185g/km – 220g/km
- 185g/km: £1,771.00 (12 months), £442.00 (3 months), £146.00 (1 month)
- 190g/km: £1,839.00 (12 months), £459.00 (3 months), £152.00 (1 month)
- 195g/km: £1,902.00 (12 months), £475.00 (3 months), £158.00 (1 month)
- 200g/km: £1,971.00 (12 months), £492.00 (3 months), £163.00 (1 month)
- 205g/km: £2,034.00 (12 months), £509.00 (3 months), £169.00 (1 month)
- 210g/km: £2,102.00 (12 months), £524.00 (3 months), £174.00 (1 month)
- 215g/km: £2,165.00 (12 months), £541.00 (3 months), £180.00 (1 month)
- 220g/km: £2,233.00 (12 months), £557.00 (3 months), £185.00 (1 month)
CO2 Emissions: 225g/km or more
- 12 Month Period: £2,297.00
- 3 Month Period: £574.00
- 1 Month Period: £190.00
Calculating the Charge for Multiple Cars
HMRC advises: "To do this, work out how much of the accounting period you used each car for, and record this as a percentage of the accounting period. Apply this percentage to each road fuel scale charge to get a total figure."
These updated charges reflect the latest HMRC guidance and are essential for businesses to ensure correct VAT reporting and compliance.
