2026 vehicle tax: Penalties begin for nearly 800,000 owners who missed the deadline
Nearly 800,000 vehicle owners who failed to pay their 2026 vehicle tax on time are facing newly introduced tiered penalties starting today.
According to data released by the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE), vehicle tax payments were completed on time for 5.94 million of the 6.75 million vehicles registered nationwide by the December 31, 2025 deadline. This corresponds to an on-time payment rate of 88 percent, broadly in line with the figures recorded for the 2025 vehicle tax period.
More than one million vehicle owners, however, did not meet the deadline. Of these, approximately 209,000 vehicles were officially declared as “withdrawn from circulation” under inactivity status. The remaining nearly 800,000 vehicle owners are now subject to financial penalties due to late payment.
New Tiered Penalty System
A significant change has been introduced to the penalty framework this year. Instead of the flat 100 percent surcharge applied in previous years, a tiered system is now in effect:
- Payments made by February 2, 2026: a penalty equal to 25 percent of the vehicle tax
- Payments made by March 2, 2026: a penalty equal to 50 percent of the vehicle tax
- Payments made after March 3, 2026, partial payments, or non-payment: a penalty equal to 100 percent of the vehicle tax
Reduced Penalties for Commercial Vehicles
Lower penalty rates will apply to commercial vehicles, including taxis used for public transport, trucks, and buses. For these categories, penalties will be set at 50 percent of the standard rates outlined above.
AADE data also show that 208,976 vehicles were officially reported as withdrawn from traffic for the 2026 tax year.
