Fuel scale charges 2026/27: a 140g/km car now costs £294 a quarter

A quarterly VAT filer with a 140g/km car now accounts for £49.00 of VAT on a £294 fuel scale charge. The new charges apply from the first VAT period that starts on or after 1 May 2026. They matter only if your business reclaims VAT on all the fuel for a car, private use included.

Work out your own charge with the fuel scale charge calculator.

What is a fuel scale charge?

A fuel scale charge is a fixed amount, set by a car's CO2 emissions, that stands in for private fuel use. If your business reclaims all the VAT on a car's fuel, you account for VAT on this charge. It saves you logging every private mile.

The charge depends on the length of your VAT period and the car's CO2 figure. Round the CO2 figure down to the nearest 5 before you look it up. A car at 143g/km uses the 140g/km figure.

What are the 2026/27 charges?

For a 3-month VAT period, the 2026/27 charge runs from £163 for a car at 120g/km or less to £574 at 225g/km or more. All figures are VAT inclusive. The bands below are examples from HMRC's published list, for each period length.

For the bands in between, use the calculator, which holds the full table.

What it means for you

Because the charge is VAT inclusive, the VAT element is the charge × 1/6. Most businesses file quarterly, so here is the VAT in each 3-month charge.

Say you file quarterly and run one company car at 143g/km. Round it down to 140g/km. The quarterly charge is £294, and £294 × 1/6 = £49.00. You add £49.00 to your output tax (the VAT you owe HMRC) each quarter. That is £196.00 over four quarters, and £98.00 a quarter with two such cars.

Now check whether the charge is worth it.

Say the same car uses £600 of fuel a quarter, including VAT, and a quarter of its miles are private. The VAT in the fuel is £600 × 1/6 = £100. With the scale charge, you reclaim £100 and pay back £49.00, so you keep £51.00. Reclaiming on business miles only, you keep £75.00. Here the scale charge costs you £24.00 a quarter.

Who this affects

The fuel scale charge only applies to cars where the business reclaims VAT on all fuel, including private use. It does not apply to vans.

You have two other options:

• Reclaim VAT on business mileage only. Keep mileage records and reclaim only the VAT on fuel for business journeys. No scale charge.
• Reclaim no VAT on fuel at all. Simplest, and no scale charge, but you lose the VAT on business fuel too.

If private mileage is low, the scale charge can cost more than it gives back, as in the example. If private mileage is high, the scale charge is often the better deal.

What to do now

• Find each car's CO2 figure and round it down to the nearest 5.
• Look up the new charge for your VAT period length, from the first period that begins on or after 1 May 2026.
• Update your bookkeeping software or spreadsheet if it still holds last year's figures.
• Compare your fuel spend with the VAT on the charge, and switch method if the alternative is cheaper.

What has not changed

• The method. You still round CO2 down to the nearest 5 and take 1/6 of the charge as VAT.
• The choice. Business-mileage-only reclaim and no reclaim are still open to you.
• Vans. They remain outside the fuel scale charge.
• VAT on road fuel. It is still charged at 20%, on top of fuel duty.

Source

HMRC publishes the full list on gov.uk: VAT road fuel scale charges tables. For how VAT works on fuel more generally, read our VAT on fuel guide.