Low emission zones in Germany
35 zones, one badge: the green badge (Umweltplakette) is valid across Germany, costs around €5 once and stays valid for the life of the vehicle. Here is which badge your car gets, where you need it and what a violation costs.
The same rule applies in all 35 active low emission zones: entry only with a green badge, around the clock, 365 days a year.
Fine €100 · Badge from €5 · Valid indefinitely
Which badge does my car get?
The classification is the same across Germany. It follows the emission key number in the registration certificate (Zulassungsbescheinigung Teil I, field 14.1), not the age of the vehicle.
| Pollutant group | Badge | Diesel | Petrol |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | none | Euro 1 or worse | without a regulated catalytic converter under Anlage XXIII StVZO (so, before Euro 1) |
| 2 | red | Euro 2, or Euro 1 with a retrofitted particulate filter | — |
| 3 | yellow | Euro 3, or Euro 2 with a retrofitted particulate filter | — |
| 4 | green | Euro 4, 5 or 6, or Euro 3 with a retrofitted particulate filter | with a regulated catalytic converter under Anlage XXIII StVZO, or Euro 1 or better |
Petrol cars have only two classifications: the green badge with a regulated catalytic converter, and none at all without one. There is no yellow or red badge for petrol cars.
Vehicles registered abroad
Vehicles registered abroad need a badge too. If the Euro standard is not stated in the vehicle documents, the classification is based on the date of first registration.
| Diesel / Petrol | Euro standard | First registration | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diesel | Euro 1 or older | before 1 Jan 1997 | none |
| Diesel | Euro 2, or Euro 1 + particulate filter | 1 Jan 1997 – 31 Dec 2000 | red |
| Diesel | Euro 3, or Euro 2 + particulate filter | 1 Jan 2001 – 31 Dec 2005 | yellow |
| Diesel | Euro 4, or Euro 3 + particulate filter | from 1 Jan 2006 | green |
| Petrol | before Euro 1 | before 1 Jan 1993 | none |
| Petrol | Euro 1 and better | from 1 Jan 1993 | green |
Berlin recommends ordering the badge around three weeks before your trip. The online shop of the Berlin vehicle registration office accepts foreign vehicle documents and ships abroad.
Online shop of the Berlin vehicle registration office (also in English) →Buying a badge
- Issuing points
- vehicle registration office · TÜV · DEKRA · GTÜ · FSP · KÜS · emissions-test (AU) authorised workshops
- Cost
- Federal law sets no uniform fee, so issuing offices price the badge themselves. The Berlin vehicle registration office charges €5 over the counter and €6 for an online order including postage; official sources quote a range of €5 to €15.
- Validity
- Valid indefinitely. You only need a new badge if the registration number changes, the windscreen is replaced, or the registration number written on the badge is no longer legible.
- Ordering from abroad
- Berlin recommends applying for the badge around three weeks before you travel, as processing and postage take 7 to 14 days. In Germany itself, TÜV, DEKRA, GTÜ, KÜS or an emissions-test (AU) authorised workshop issues it on the spot on presentation of the vehicle documents.
Where you need the badge
All 35 active low emission zones, grouped by federal state. Each one applies around the clock and requires the green badge; three cities also ban older diesels.
Umweltzone Berlin
The city centre inside the S-Bahn ring, around 88 km².
Berlin · Green badge since 1 Ocak 2010
Umweltzone München
Diesel banThe Mittlerer Ring and everything inside it. Plus a diesel ban from Euro 4/IV down.
Bayern · Green badge since 1 Ekim 2012
Umweltzone Stuttgart
Diesel banThe entire city area. Plus a diesel ban, up to Euro 5/V in the Talkessel basin.
Baden-Württemberg · Green badge since 1 Ocak 2012
Umweltzone Ruhrgebiet
Europe's largest low emission zone: 866 km² across 13 cities in the Ruhr area.
Nordrhein-Westfalen · Green badge since 1 Temmuz 2014
Mülheim an der RuhrEssenDuisburgGelsenkirchenOberhausenBottropCastrop-RauxelBaden-Württemberg
3 zones
Bayern
3 zones
Berlin
1 zone
Bremen
1 zone
Niedersachsen
1 zone
Nordrhein-Westfalen
17 zones
Sachsen
1 zone
Sachsen-Anhalt
2 zones
Fine and enforcement
With fees and costs, €128,50 in total. No penalty points, no driving ban.
The fine also applies to parking in the low emission zone, not just to driving into it.
How it is enforced
Enforcement is done by eye: the police check the badge during ordinary traffic stops, municipal traffic wardens check parked vehicles, and individual cities run targeted enforcement days. Where a diesel driving ban applies on top, every case that lands at the fines office anyway (speeding, red lights, parking) is additionally checked against the emissions class of the vehicle.
There are no entry barriers and no number plate cameras. What gets checked is the badge behind the windscreen.
Exemptions
Motorcycles, mopeds and trikes never need a badge. Annex 3 of the 35th BImSchV also exempts, across Germany:
- mobile machinery and equipment
- work machines
- agricultural and forestry tractors
- two- and three-wheeled motor vehicles: motorcycles, mopeds and trikes never need a badge
- ambulances and physician vehicles displaying the "Arzt Notfalleinsatz" emergency-call marking (§ 52 Abs. 6 StVZO)
- vehicles in which people whose disability pass carries the codes "aG", "H" or "Bl" are driving or being driven (§ 3 Abs. 1 Nr. 1–3 SchwbAwV)
- vehicles covered by the special rights in § 35 StVO: police, fire brigade, emergency medical services, street cleaning
- vehicles of non-German forces from non-NATO states on urgent military journeys
- civilian vehicles operating on behalf of the Bundeswehr on official journeys that cannot be postponed
- classic cars with an H plate or a red 07 plate (§ 9 Abs. 1 / § 17 FZV), and equivalent historic vehicles from the EU, the EEA or Turkey
Where the green badge is not enough
Three cities also ban older diesels. There it is the Euro standard in the vehicle documents that counts, not the badge on the windscreen.
Stuttgart
Diesels up to Euro 4/IV banned across the whole city area, and up to Euro 5/V in the small low emission zone.
München
Diesels up to Euro 4/IV banned, including the Mittlerer Ring. Residents and delivery traffic are exempt.
Darmstadt
Two road sections: diesels up to Euro 5 and petrol cars up to Euro 2 are banned.
These low emission zones no longer exist
23 low emission zones have been lifted since 2020, most recently Freiburg and Mainz. The reason: once the annual mean for nitrogen dioxide stays below 50 µg/m³, driving bans count as disproportionate under section 47 of the Federal Immission Control Act (BImSchG).
Common questions
Which badge do I need for German low emission zones?
In all 35 active low emission zones the rule is the same: entry only with a green badge (pollutant group 4). Yellow and red badges no longer allow entry anywhere.
What does the green badge cost?
Around €5 at the vehicle registration office, around €6 online including postage. TÜV, DEKRA and emissions-test (AU) authorised workshops issue it as well; private sellers sometimes charge considerably more.
How long is the badge valid?
Indefinitely. You only need a new one if the number plate changes, the windscreen is replaced or the badge has become unreadable.
What does driving in without a badge cost?
A fine of €100, or €128.50 in total with fees and costs. There are no penalty points. The fine also applies to parking in the zone.
Do motorcycles need a green badge?
No. Two- and three-wheeled motor vehicles are exempt from the badge requirement across Germany.
Does the low emission zone apply on the motorway?
No. Motorways are exempt from low emission zone bans and may be driven without a badge, even where they pass through a zone.
Do foreign vehicles need a badge?
Yes. Vehicles registered abroad need the green badge too. Berlin recommends ordering it online around three weeks before your trip; on the spot, TÜV and DEKRA issue it immediately.
Is the green badge enough everywhere?
Almost everywhere. Stuttgart and Munich also ban diesels up to Euro 4/IV, and Darmstadt closes two road sections. There the Euro standard decides, not the badge.
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Official sources
- Bundesministerium der Justiz / juris
- Umweltbundesamt · As of 1 Ekim 2025
- Umweltbundesamt
- Senatsverwaltung für Mobilität, Verkehr, Klimaschutz und Umwelt (Berlin)
- Senatsverwaltung für Umwelt, Verkehr und Klimaschutz (Berlin)
- SenMVKU Berlin
- SenMVKU Berlin
- SenMVKU Berlin
- Landeshauptstadt München
- Landeshauptstadt Stuttgart · As of 24 Şubat 2026
- Stadt Mülheim an der Ruhr
- Ministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz und Verkehr NRW
Information provided without guarantee. The signs on site and the official publication of the responsible authority always take precedence.