Pay-Per-Mile Tax Calculator
Estimate what the announced UK electric Vehicle Excise Duty mileage charge could mean for your annual driving. The official policy is not a charge on every car today: it is due to start from April 2028 for UK-registered battery-electric and plug-in hybrid cars.
Important status check
This is a 2028 eVED estimator, not a 2026/27 tax bill
GOV.UK says eVED will be introduced from 1 April 2028 and will be paid alongside normal Vehicle Excise Duty. The starting rates in the consultation are 3p per mile for fully electric cars and 1.5p per mile for plug-in hybrid cars. Details can still be refined before launch, so use this page to plan, compare and sense-check costs rather than to treat the result as a DVLA demand.
EV rate
3p/mile
PHEV rate
1.5p/mile
Start date
Apr 2028
Estimate your mileage charge
Choose the official 2028 eVED route, or switch to a custom pence-per-mile scenario for policy comparisons.
Use a realistic yearly total, including commuting, school runs, leisure and long trips.
Useful for testing a different road-pricing proposal.
This is only a current-rate comparison, not a forecast of 2028 VED.
8,000-mile EV
GBP 240
At the announced 3p/mile rate, the consultation's example EV mileage bill is around GBP 20 per month.
8,000-mile PHEV
GBP 120
Plug-in hybrid cars have a reduced 1.5p/mile starting rate because they still pay fuel duty on petrol miles.
Break-even check
6,667 miles
At 3p/mile, the mileage charge equals a GBP 200 current VED comparison at roughly this distance.
What has actually been announced?
The useful distinction is this: the UK does not currently have a general pay-per-mile road-pricing system for all drivers, but HM Treasury has announced a mileage-based eVED charge for electric and plug-in hybrid cars from April 2028. That matters for searchers, because older articles about road pricing can make it sound either completely hypothetical or already universal. Neither is quite right.
GOV.UK describes eVED as an additional mileage-based add-on to Vehicle Excise Duty. It is intended to make EV and PHEV car drivers contribute to usage-based motoring tax as fuel duty receipts fall. Petrol and diesel drivers already pay fuel duty through the pump; electric drivers do not pay an equivalent when charging at home or at a public charger.
The starting rate is lower than the fuel-duty equivalent for an average petrol or diesel car. For a fully electric car, the announced rate is 3p per mile. For a plug-in hybrid car, the announced rate is 1.5p per mile. The consultation says the rate will be uprated in future years in line with CPI, so a calculator for April 2028 should not pretend that today's pence figure will necessarily stay frozen forever.
| Route | Starting rate | In scope? |
|---|---|---|
| Battery electric car | 3p/mile | Yes, from April 2028 |
| Plug-in hybrid car | 1.5p/mile | Yes, from April 2028 |
| Petrol or diesel car | No eVED rate | Pays fuel duty instead |
| Vans, motorcycles, HGVs | Not covered here | Out of scope at launch |
How to read your result without overreacting
The most useful number is the annual mileage charge. A driver doing 5,000 miles a year in an EV would see an eVED estimate of GBP 150 at 3p per mile. At 12,000 miles, it becomes GBP 360. That is the point of a mileage-based charge: the rate can look small, but high-mileage households feel it more quickly than people who mainly do short local journeys.
The monthly figure is only a planning view. GOV.UK says eVED payments are expected to be integrated into the existing VED system and that motorists should be able to pay annually or split payments, but final DVLA processes and reconciliation details can still affect the practical experience.
The VED comparison input is deliberately labelled as a comparison, not as a 2028 forecast. Current post-2017 car VED is GBP 200 for a normal annual renewal, or GBP 640 where the current expensive car supplement applies. By 2028 those rates could have changed. Use the comparison to understand scale: at 3p/mile, a GBP 200 annual VED amount is matched at roughly 6,667 miles. At 1.5p/mile, it is matched at roughly 13,333 miles.
Worked examples for different drivers
Low-mileage city EV
A London driver doing 4,500 miles a year would pay 4,500 x 3p = GBP 135 a year in eVED. Their bigger car costs may still be insurance, parking, charging and congestion or clean-air charges.
Typical plug-in hybrid
A PHEV doing 8,000 miles would pay 8,000 x 1.5p = GBP 120. The lower eVED rate recognises that PHEV drivers may still pay fuel duty when using petrol.
High-mileage EV household
An EV covering 20,000 miles would pay 20,000 x 3p = GBP 600. That is why motorway commuters, rural households and family drivers should test their own mileage rather than using a national average.
How this calculator works
Inputs used
- Expected annual mileage.
- Vehicle route: battery electric car, plug-in hybrid car, or custom pence-per-mile scenario.
- Optional current VED comparison amount: none, current GBP 200 standard rate, current GBP 640 supplement rate, or a manual amount.
Calculation method
- Convert the selected pence-per-mile rate into pounds per mile.
- Multiply annual mileage by the rate to estimate the annual mileage charge.
- Divide by 12 to show a monthly planning equivalent.
- If a VED comparison is selected, add it separately and calculate the mileage at which the mileage charge equals that comparison amount.
- Show common mileage scenarios so EV, PHEV and custom-rate outcomes can be compared without re-entering the form.
Assumptions
- Official eVED defaults use the GOV.UK consultation rates announced for April 2028: 3p/mile for fully electric cars and 1.5p/mile for plug-in hybrid cars.
- The current VED comparison uses today's published vehicle tax rates and is not a forecast of 2028 VED.
- The estimate assumes all annual miles entered are chargeable miles for a UK-registered in-scope car, including any miles driven outside the UK if the final policy follows the consultation approach.
What this does not cover
- This page does not calculate ordinary car VED bands; use the Car Tax Calculator or Road Tax Calculator for current vehicle tax.
- It does not decide clean-air charging; use the ULEZ / CAZ Cost Estimator for zone charges.
- It does not cover company car benefit-in-kind, salary sacrifice, vans, motorcycles, HGVs, imports, disability-related VED exemptions, future CPI uprating, or DVLA reconciliation adjustments.
What this page cannot know yet
Your final DVLA reconciliation
The consultation describes mileage estimates, annual readings, MOT checks and reconciliation. This calculator does not connect to DVLA and cannot know how your final mileage declaration will be adjusted.
Future rate uprating
GOV.UK says the eVED rate will be uprated with CPI after introduction. The tool uses the announced starting rate unless you choose a custom rate.
Vehicle classification
The scope is cars. If your vehicle is taxed as a van, motorcycle, limited-use vehicle, historic vehicle or another specialist class, check official DVLA guidance rather than relying on this estimate.
Total motoring cost
This is not a full ownership calculator. Insurance, charging, fuel duty on PHEV petrol miles, servicing, depreciation, parking, tolls and local clean-air charges can easily outweigh the mileage charge.
Pay-per-mile tax FAQs
Is pay-per-mile tax already in force in the UK?
Will EV drivers pay 3p for every mile?
Will plug-in hybrids pay the same as EVs?
Does eVED replace normal VED?
Will the government track where I drive?
Official sources
Last verified: May 10 2026. Calculations are estimates based on the published rules and assumptions shown on this page.
- GOV.UK eVED consultation - official consultation setting out the April 2028 eVED start date, 3p EV rate, 1.5p PHEV rate, scope and proposed mileage reporting process
- GOV.UK eVED consultation landing page - publication and update history for the HM Treasury eVED consultation
- GOV.UK vehicle tax rates - current VED comparison rates, including 2026/27 post-2017 standard rate and expensive car supplement figures
- GOV.UK electric, zero and low emission vehicle tax - current VED treatment of electric and low emission vehicles