Current toll developments in Europe

The HGV, or commercial vehicle toll, is a distance-based road user charge. It was introduced in 2005 on federal motorways and extended in 2012 to sections of federal roads. According to the German Federal Trunk Road Toll Act​​​​​​​ (§ 1), all domestic and foreign motor vehicles or vehicle combinations with a permissible total weight of more than 7.5 tonnes are subject to tolls. Tolls are incurred when entering a federal trunk road and apply to federal roads, federal motorways and connected petrol stations and rest areas.

The reason for the adjustment is EU requirements within the framework of the Eurovignette Directive and the Wegekostengutachten of the Federal Ministry of Digital Affairs and Transport. According to the report, HGV tolls should be based on the cost of traffic infrastructure, including construction, operation, maintenance and expansion.

The toll is comprised of fees related infrastructure costs, noise pollution and air pollution - depending on a vehicle’s CO₂-emission class, weight class (above 18 tonnes permissible total weight), and number of axles. 

Current toll rates (as of January 01, 2023) can be found on the Federal Office for Logistics and Mobility website or at Toll Collect.

On December 1, 2023, a CO₂ differentiation of the HGV toll and a CO₂ surcharge of 200 Euros per tonne of CO₂ will be introduced. Emissions-free HGVs will be exempt from tolls until the end of 2025, after which 25% of the toll rate will be collected for infrastructure costs.​​​​​​​

From December 01, 2023, a CO₂ surcharge will be added to tolls in Germany. On January 01, 2024, Austria will introduce a similar CO₂ surcharge, and other EU countries may follow.​​​​​​​
Each vehicle has a specific CO₂ emissions value and is initially classified into one of five CO₂ emission classes for six years on the respective initial registration date based on various parameters.​​​​​​​ A CO₂ reclassification then takes place to check whether the current CO₂ emission class of the vehicle is compliant.​​​​​​​

In the beginning, all vehicles are classified in the worst CO₂ emission class of 1. Vehicles registered on or after July 01, 2019 can be registered for a better CO₂ emission class using supporting documentation.
For a better classification, additional documents (COC/CIF) must be submitted for review.​​​​​​​ Further information is provided here.​​​​​​​ 
The better the CO₂ emission class of the vehicle is, the cheaper the tariff. For example, zero-emission vehicles are classified in the best CO₂ emission class 5. However, the majority of today's vehicles will be grouped in CO₂ emission class 1.​​​​​​​

Save on tolls now by improving your CO₂ emission class!​​​​​​​ 

You can determine the CO₂ emission class of your vehicle by using the official BALM calculator.​​​​​​​

UTA Edenred would be happy to facilitate your CO₂ emission class registration. We will provide you with details to register via the UTA Service Center.​​​​​​​ 
Bear in mind that even if your vehicle is CO₂ emission class 1 today, this may change for a new vehicle. Each time you register, data will be requested.​​​​​​​ 

If a vehicle has a CO₂ emission class better than class 1, it must be registered. This can be done in different ways depending on the OBU used.​​​​​​​
If using a Toll Collect OBU to settle German tolls, vehicle data and documents (COC/CIF) must be uploaded in the Toll Collect Portal.​​​​​​​ When using UTA One®, UTA One® next or Telepass EU (AUT), vehicle data and verification documents must be uploaded to the UTA Service Center as soon as possible. When using the Austrian GO-Box or the Toll2GO service, vehicle data and verification documents must be uploaded to the GO Toll Portal.

The following tables are excerpted from "Draft of a third law amending toll regulations" and have yet to be adopted.​​​​​​​ 

Surcharges from December 1, 2023 in €:

Surcharges from July 01, 2024:​​​​​​​

Source: https://bmdv.bund.de/SharedDocs/DE/Anlage/Gesetze/Gesetze-20/entwurf-eines-dritten-gesetzes-aenderung-mautrechtlicher-vorschriften.pdf?__blob=publicationFile

From July 2024, commercial vehicles with a gross weight of more than 3.5 tonnes will be subject to tolls in Germany if they are intended for or used for commercial road haulage.​​​​​​​ The HGV toll will then affect commercial vehicles weighing more than 3.5 tonnes that use motorways and toll roads.

In Germany, tolls are generally collected electronically via a toll box – also known as an on-board unit (OBU). Installed in a vehicle, the OBU sends toll data to the toll collection agency (Toll Collect in Germany), which calculates and bills the toll. 

With UTA Edenred, you have an experienced partner by your side who relieves you of the administrative burden of toll processing, from the provision of information and registration with European toll operators to the installation of OBUs and billing of tolls. 

With our UTA One® next OBU, you can manage tolls easily and efficiently, for example. You’ll gain transparency into fees and can see the routes taken by your drivers. 

The toll extension will now also affect companies with commercial vehicles of more than 3.5 tonnes. However, under certain conditions, it is possible to be exempted from tolls. Here are some examples:

Electrically powered vehicles: Under the new legislation, such vehicles are exempt from tolls for an unlimited period. Electrically powered vehicles include, according to § 2 No. 1 Electromobility Act, pure battery electric vehicles, externally chargeable hybrid vehicles and fuel cell vehicles. E-HGVs are also not subject to tolls.

(Predominantly) natural gas-powered vehicles: These are exempt from tolls until the end of 2023. Under the new toll tariff system, vehicles powered by natural gas will also be subject to tolls and will have to pay a proportion of noise reduction and infrastructure costs.

You can read which vehicles are currently exempt from the toll here. 

Exception for craftsmen's vehicles: According to the Directives of the EU, individual member states can decide on a so-called craftsmen's exception. In Germany, the coalition committee decided that the exception for craftsmen should continue through 2024. This means that vehicles of more than 3.5 tonnes also remain toll-free.​​​​​​​

Companies and owners of non-toll vehicles can register them voluntarily with Toll Collect. Registration prevents unnecessary controls, diversions and hearings. This saves effort and time. Registration is valid for two years, then can be extended. Registrations that have not been renewed by the expiry date will automatically expire.