Registration tax amounts for zero-emission passenger cars in Denmark

How the tax is worked out

The registration tax is worked out in four steps. The figures below are for a new car notified for registration in 2026; used cars are covered further down.

First, the starting point is the car's taxable value: the value including VAT but excluding registration tax.

Second, the ordinary tax under section 4 is worked out. Part of it is charged in three bands: 25% up to a first limit, 85% between the first and a second limit and 150% above the second, with 2026 limits of DKK 76,400 and DKK 237,400. A CO2 supplement is charged per gram of CO2 per km, so a car that emits 0 g CO2 per km pays none of it. A general deduction of DKK 25,500 in 2026 is then taken from the tax plus the supplement, and it cannot be more than their sum.

Third, the section 5 b percentage for the year of notification (40% in 2026) is applied to the tax that results from the ordinary calculation, that is, after the general deduction.

Fourth, the special deduction for that year (DKK 161,300 in 2026) is taken from the result. It can bring the tax to zero but not below.

The schedule by year

The percentage and the special deduction depend on the year the car is notified for registration (anmeldelse til registrering):

• 2026: 40% of the ordinary tax and a deduction of DKK 161,300
• 2027: 48% of the ordinary tax and a deduction of DKK 152,200
• 2028: 56% of the ordinary tax and a deduction of DKK 146,900
• 2029: 64% of the ordinary tax and a deduction of DKK 141,600
• 2030: 72% of the ordinary tax and a deduction of DKK 136,300
• 2031: 80% of the ordinary tax and a deduction of DKK 130,900
• 2032: 84% of the ordinary tax and a deduction of DKK 130,600
• 2033: 88% of the ordinary tax and a deduction of DKK 134,800
• 2034: 92% of the ordinary tax and a deduction of DKK 134,600
• 2035: 96% of the ordinary tax and a deduction of DKK 134,400
• 2036 and later: 100% of the ordinary tax and a deduction of DKK 137,000

An official example

The tax administration's guidance gives this example: for a passenger car registered in 2021 to 2026 whose registration tax under section 4 is DKK 100,000, the tax under section 5 b can be calculated as 40% of that amount, DKK 40,000.

Our own illustration

This illustration is ours, not the tax administration's. It assumes a new zero-emission passenger car notified for registration in 2026 and takes the agency's figure of DKK 100,000 under section 4 as its starting point: 40% of that is DKK 40,000, and the 2026 deduction of DKK 161,300 is larger than DKK 40,000, so the tax after the deduction would be zero.

The illustration does not carry over to a used car: for a used car the section 4 amounts and the deduction are both reduced, so DKK 161,300 does not apply unchanged.

Used cars

For a used car, the section 4 amounts (the bands, the CO2 supplement and the general deduction) and the special deduction are all reduced by the same percentage as the car's value including tax has changed compared with a similar car taxed as new.

For an imported used car, a valuation is an assessment of the car's current value, and it is used to determine how much registration tax is payable.

A used car that already has Danish plates and on which the registration tax has been paid is re-registered to the buyer.

Adjusted and fixed amounts

The Act states the section 4 base amounts at 2010 price level and adjusts them every year under section 20 of the Personal Tax Act. The figures on this page, DKK 76,400 and DKK 237,400 for the band limits and DKK 25,500 for the general deduction, are already the adjusted values for 2026, not the 2010 base amounts. The special deduction amounts work differently: the Act states them as kroner amounts for each year, not at 2010 price level, and the adjustment provision of section 4(8) does not name them. The section 5 b percentage is applied to the tax that results from the ordinary calculation, after the general deduction, and the special deduction is then taken from that result. The Ministry of Taxation's calculation-method note of December 2025 describes the same order; its own percentages and special deductions are from before the one-year deferral and are not used on this page.

What this page does not cover

Low-emission cars, typically plug-in hybrids, emit more than 0 but less than 50 g CO2 per km and fall under section 5 c; for such a car notified for registration in 2026 the tax is by default 68% of the ordinary tax and the deduction is DKK 43,000. Cars taxed under section 5 of the Act and electric and fuel-cell motorcycles have their own deductions in section 5 b.

Basis of this page

The percentages and deduction amounts follow section 5 b of the Registration Tax Act as amended by Act no. 1777 of 29 December 2025, which postponed the phasing-in of the higher tax and entered into force on 1 January 2026. They agree with the Danish tax administration's legal guidance (edition 2026-2). The Folketing can change the rules, so check the official sources before relying on a figure when buying a car.