Driving in Germany from the UK: the emission sticker and the rules

Yes, if your route enters one of Germany's 35 active environmental zones, which sit in inner-city areas such as Berlin, Munich, Cologne and Stuttgart. A green emission sticker must be on the windscreen, and the fine without one is €100 (about £84). Elsewhere, a UK photocard licence is valid for up to 6 months.

Each rule below was read on 3 November 2026. The sticker rules come from the Federal Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt) and a Bavarian state portal, the licence rules from GOV.UK travel advice for Germany. The Autobahn and winter tyre rules come from ADAC, the German motoring club, which is not a public body, so each of those lines says so. Euro fines are followed by their value in pounds, at the European Central Bank reference rate.

Of everything on this page, the sticker is the one item that needs action before you leave, because it is ordered in advance. The Autobahn, winter tyre and licence rules need only that you know them.

An Umweltzone is an area where only vehicles that meet set exhaust standards may drive. The Umweltbundesamt page on environmental zones says the legal basis is the 35th Federal Immission Control Ordinance and that Germany still has 35 of them. Many cities have lifted theirs, because the agency says every limit value has been met at all German monitoring stations since 2024, and it adds that stricter EU limits from 2030 could make zones relevant again.

One sticker works in every zone, not only in the city where you bought it. The Umweltbundesamt map and list of zones lists 35 zones in force and 23 lifted, with its content last changed on 26 August 2026, and it notes that each municipality is responsible for the accuracy of its own entry.

Hamburg is not on the list of zones in force. Hanover, Mainz and Erfurt appear on the list of lifted zones, so an old guide that sends you to buy a sticker for them is out of date. For any town on your route, check the city's own page before you drive in.

The Umweltbundesamt page on environmental zones says that since 2012 only vehicles with a green sticker may enter the existing zones. It describes the green sticker as going to diesel cars with Euro 4, or Euro 3 and a particulate filter, and to petrol cars with a catalytic converter of the required type, or Euro 1 or better. It adds that over 90 per cent of vehicles now meet the green standard.

DEKRA, one of the inspection bodies that issues the sticker, says vehicles registered abroad need it in the zones too. The Umweltbundesamt states the fine for driving into a zone without a sticker or an exemption as €100 (about £84). Some older articles still say €80 (about £67), so use the agency's figure.

The sticker goes on the windscreen where it can be seen. The agency exempts motorcycles and three-wheeled motor vehicles, and lets local authorities grant an exemption to a single vehicle on request. It says the federal government is working on an exemption for electric vehicles, which is not the same as one being in force, so do not assume a battery car is exempt.

The BayernPortal page on the Umweltplakette says the sticker is issued by the vehicle registration authorities and by recognised emissions-testing bodies, among them TÜV Süd, DEKRA, GTÜ and KÜS. It asks for the vehicle registration certificate, it is valid nationwide and has no expiry date, and it costs about €6 (about £5) at a registration authority. The page adds that an online order costs more once the check and postage are added.

DEKRA's order page gives €19.90 (about £17) including German VAT and shipping, paid by invoice. For foreign-registered cars it points to its companies in France, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Sweden, Slovakia and the Czech Republic and lists none in the UK. It states no delivery time.

GOV.UK driving abroad warns that some European cities require emission stickers and that you may need to buy them weeks before you travel. We found no official page that gives a delivery time for a UK address, so order as early as you can.

1. Check your route
   Open the map of zones and look at every city you will drive into, including the one where you stay.
2. Find your papers
   The issuing body asks for the registration certificate. For a UK car the V5C is the nearest document, but we found no official page that says so.
3. Order from an issuing body
   Use one of the registration authorities or testing bodies named by the state portal.
4. Allow time
   Order weeks ahead, as GOV.UK advises, and keep the confirmation with the car.
5. Fix it
   Put it on the windscreen where it can be seen.

GOV.UK travel advice for Germany says you can drive in Germany for up to 6 months with a UK photocard licence. For a longer stay it asks for the 1968 international driving permit alongside the licence, and our guide to the international driving permit explains how to get one before you travel. It also says you may need written permission from the owner to drive a vehicle you do not own, and to check whether you need a UK sticker.

For a car you take from home, GOV.UK driving abroad lists the V5C log book, and the VE103 certificate for a hired or leased vehicle. Our driving abroad guide covers what applies in every country.

ADAC, the German motoring club, says 130 km/h (about 81 mph) is a recommended speed on roads with no posted limit, not a legal limit. Going faster is not an offence in itself and carries no fine or points, and a sign that orders a limit overrides it. The recommendation is meant for the best road, weather and traffic conditions.

The risk is in an accident. ADAC says a driver who could have avoided a crash by keeping to the recommended speed may bear at least 20 per cent of the blame, even when another driver started it. It says the recommendation also covers roads outside towns with two marked lanes each way or a central divider.

The text of section 3 puts the 100 km/h limit outside towns on cars and vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes and says it does not apply on Autobahns. If you tow a trailer or drive a motorhome, the limits differ and we have not read them.

ADAC says the emergency lane, the Rettungsgasse, must be formed as soon as traffic slows to walking pace, and not only in a full jam. Drivers in the left lane move left, and drivers in every other lane move right, so a corridor opens for rescue vehicles. It reports that a court held there is no time to think: the gap is formed at once.

We found no official source on how points and bans are applied to a UK licence holder, so the table gives the penalty as ADAC states it and no more.

The rule turns on the road, not the calendar. The text of section 2 of the Straßenverkehrs-Ordnung, as published on dejure.org, says a motor vehicle may be driven in black ice, snow-covered road, slush, ice or frost on the road only if all its wheels carry tyres that meet the technical standard. ADAC adds that since 1 October 2024 only tyres with the Alpine symbol count in those conditions and a tyre marked M+S alone no longer does.

ADAC says the rule applies to cars with foreign plates, and gives three levels of fine, each with one point in the German register.

A British car fitted with summer tyres or M+S-only tyres is the case to check before a winter trip. Look for the Alpine symbol on the sidewall of all four tyres, and ask a hire company which tyres its car carries.

Section 24a of the Straßenverkehrsgesetz, as published on dejure.org in the version in force since 1 July 2026, sets the offence at 0.25 mg per litre of breath or 0.5 per mille in the blood, with a fine of up to €3,000 (about £2,510). The text we read does not say how it treats novice drivers, so a newly qualified British driver should treat the limit as zero.

Start with the sticker, because it is the only item that needs weeks. Then check GOV.UK travel advice for Germany for changes close to departure. A German sticker is not a French one: France runs its own system, set out in our guide to the Crit'Air sticker.

• Sticker
  The zone cities on your route, and a green sticker ordered weeks ahead.
• Licence
  A photocard, valid for up to 6 months, or the 1968 permit for longer.
• Car papers
  The V5C for your own car, the VE103 for a hired or leased one.
• Tyres
  The Alpine symbol on all four, if the trip falls in winter.
• Autobahn
  A plan for the emergency lane and for 130 km/h as a recommendation, not a target.

• Do I need an emission sticker to drive on the Autobahn in Germany?

  The sticker applies inside environmental zones, which GOV.UK describes as inner-city areas. A motorway journey between cities does not need one unless your route enters a zone, so check the Umweltbundesamt map against every town you drive into.

• How much is the fine for driving into a German zone without a sticker?

  The Umweltbundesamt gives €100 (about £84). Some older articles quote €80 (about £67), which predates the agency’s current figure.

• Which cities in Germany have an environmental zone?

  The Umweltbundesamt lists 35 zones in force, including Berlin, Bremen, Frankfurt, Munich, Stuttgart, Cologne, Düsseldorf, Leipzig and the Ruhr towns. Hamburg is not on the list.

• Will my UK car get a green sticker?

  It depends on the car’s emission standard. The Umweltbundesamt describes the green standard as Euro 4 for diesel, or Euro 3 with a particulate filter, and a catalytic converter of the required type or Euro 1 for petrol. DEKRA says it tells you at no cost if your vehicle does not qualify.

• How much does the German emission sticker cost?

  The BayernPortal gives about €6 (about £5) at a registration authority, and says an online order costs more. DEKRA’s order page gives €19.90 (about £17) including German VAT and shipping.

• Is there a speed limit on the German Autobahn?

  There is no general limit for cars, and 130 km/h (about 81 mph) is a recommendation. A sign that sets a limit overrides it, and ADAC says exceeding the recommendation can add at least 20 per cent to your share of blame after a crash.

• Do I need winter tyres in Germany?

  Only in wintry road conditions, but then all four wheels need tyres with the Alpine symbol, according to ADAC. Fines run from €60 (about £50) to €100 (about £84).

• Do I need an international driving permit in Germany?

  GOV.UK says a UK photocard licence is valid for up to 6 months. For a longer stay it asks for the 1968 permit alongside your licence.

• Is a German sticker valid in France?

  No. Each country has its own system, and France asks for its own Crit’Air certificate in its low-emission zones.