Road tax (or 'vehicle license') is required for every vehicle in the UK and must be renewed annually, although if the cost is greater than £50 a six month license can be purchased.
A car is only exempt from road tax if you declare that it is not being used by sending a SORN (Statutory Off Road Notification) to the DVLA. A car that does not have valid current tax can result in a fine up to £1000 for the owner.
You can obtain your tax disc through the DVLA or selected post offices. To obtain a tax disc you will need the following items:
- MOT certificate (if vehicle is over 3 years old)
- Proof of valid car insurance* covering the vehicle you are taxing
* You must be insured on the vehicle you are taxing. The ability to drive any vehicle is not acceptable proof of insurance.
You should receive a reminder in the post before your tax runs out and you will then need to display your new tax disc in the windscreen of YOUR car. Tax discs are not transferable between cars.
This is the current legislation on vehicle licenses. For the future various other implementations are being evaluated. These include toll systems like London's Congestion Charge and the M6 toll road and other more technically advanced solutions such as GSM controlled black boxes in each vehicle with charges being applied based on the number of miles travelled.
