Low-emission zones in Germany: sticker, fine and exemptions
Entering an Umweltzone without the green windscreen sticker brings a fine, but no Flensburg points.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
Low-emission zone without the right sticker
Total including fees
€128.50
| Standard fine (no. 153) | €100 |
| Fee and delivery | €28.50 |
| Points | 0 |
Driving into a German low-emission zone, an Umweltzone, without a green sticker or an exemption costs 100 euros under number 153 of the fine catalogue in 2026, and no points are added to your record. Since that amount is above the 55-euro limit for warning fines, you receive a formal fine notice with a €25 fee and €3.50 for delivery, €128.50 in total. Zones start at traffic sign 270.1, a white sign with a red ring around the word Umwelt and a panel showing the sticker allowed, and end at sign 270.2. The stickers come from a federal ordinance, the 35th BImSchV, which sorts each vehicle into one of 4 pollutant groups using the emissions code in its registration papers. Only cars, lorries and buses are covered; motorbikes, classic cars and vehicles of disabled people are exempt. According to the Federal Environment Agency, 35 zones were still in place as of 10 December 2025.
The fine in figures
Number 153 of the catalogue describes the offence as taking part in traffic with a motor vehicle despite a ban to reduce harmful air pollution, signs 270.1 and 270.2. It is a flat amount with no points and no driving ban.
| Case | Fine | Fee and delivery | Total | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No valid sticker, careless | €100 | €28.50 | €128.50 | 0 |
| No valid sticker, intentional | €200 | €28.50 | €228.50 | 0 |
Because €100 is more than €55, there is no on-the-spot warning fine. The authority sends a fine notice, and Section 107 of the Administrative Offences Act adds five per cent with a minimum of €25, plus €3.50 for delivery. Five per cent of €100 is below that minimum, so the bill is exactly €128.50. What such a notice contains is set out on the page about the German fine notice.
What the sticker is
The Umweltplakette, also called Feinstaubplakette, is a round sticker for the inside of the windscreen with your number plate written on it. It comes from the 35th Ordinance implementing the Federal Immission Control Act (35. BImSchV), which sorts vehicles into 4 pollutant groups based on the emissions code (Emissionsschlüssel) printed in the registration papers. Three of the groups get a sticker in their own colour; group 1 gets none. Since 2012, the existing zones admit only the green sticker, according to the Federal Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt, UBA). Any other colour is treated the same as no sticker at all.
Because the plate number is written on it, a sticker belongs to one registration. If you re-register the car, for example after moving to a district with a different plate prefix and choosing a new number, plan on a new sticker as well.
Exempt vehicles
Only cars, lorries and buses fall under the zone rules. Annex 3 of the ordinance exempts motorbikes and three-wheeled vehicles, working machines, agricultural and forestry tractors, mobile machinery, classic cars, vehicles used by disabled people and vehicles using special rights such as police and ambulances. The UBA reports that the federal government is working on an exemption for electric vehicles; until that exists, an electric car is not on the exemption list. Separate exemptions for a single vehicle can be granted on application by the local authority, and the permit should travel in the car, since it is the only proof you can show at a check.
A shrinking map
German cities began introducing zones in 2008, when fine dust and nitrogen dioxide levels in busy centres regularly broke EU limits. The UBA now says more than 90 per cent of vehicles meet the green-sticker standard and that in 2024, for the first time, every measuring station in Germany met all current limits. Many cities therefore lifted their zones. The agency's list counted 35 zones as of 10 December 2025. For drivers new to Germany, this means older guidebooks and navigation data can be out of date in both directions. The sign at the entry road decides: where sign 270.1 stands, the zone applies.
Why zones may matter again after 2030
From 2030, the stricter limits of EU Air Quality Directive 2024/2881 apply. The annual limits for PM10 particles and for nitrogen dioxide fall from 40 to 20 micrograms per cubic metre, and the limit for the finer PM2.5 particles from 25 to 10. The UBA expects that cities may need further measures and sees low-emission zones as one tool that could regain relevance, possibly with tighter exemptions or a more modern check than the sticker. None of this has been decided, so for 2026 the green sticker and number 153 remain the rule.
A worked example: the weekly commute
Picture someone who drives an older car without the green sticker into the same city zone on three separate days and is recorded each time. Each journey is a separate offence, so each can lead to its own notice: three times €128.50 makes €385.50. If the authority treats the third trip as intentional, that notice alone rises to €228.50. No points accumulate and the catalogue sets no driving ban for number 153, but the money adds up quickly for anyone who commutes. A green sticker, if the vehicle qualifies, or an individual exemption ends the series.
Two round stickers, two jobs
Newcomers often confuse the two stickers a German car carries. The emissions sticker sits inside the windscreen and shows the pollutant group. The inspection sticker (Prüfplakette) sits on the rear number plate and shows when the next roadworthiness test, the Hauptuntersuchung or HU, is due. They are checked under different catalogue numbers and one never replaces the other. If the plate sticker has run out, the steps and amounts are on the page about an overdue MOT in Germany.
Reading the notice
Under Section 66 of the Administrative Offences Act, a fine notice must state the offence with its time and place, the rules applied, the evidence and the amount. It also explains that it becomes final if you lodge no objection (Einspruch) and asks you to pay within two weeks of it becoming final. The objection itself must reach the authority within 2 weeks of delivery. These dates run while you are on holiday too, so post sent to your German address deserves attention even when you are away. If you held an exemption permit but did not carry it, the date and place in the notice let you match it to your papers.
Hire cars and car sharing
If you rent a car or use car sharing, look for the green sticker on the windscreen before you drive into a city centre. The fine is addressed to the driver, not to the company that owns the car, and the operator will usually pass your details on. If a notice arrives later via the rental firm, the amounts are the same as for a private car: €100 plus fees, and no points.
Bringing a car to Germany
Expats who import a car face several German formalities at once: registration, the roadworthiness test, vehicle tax and, for city driving, the sticker. The order matters little for the zone itself, but the sticker needs the vehicle's German registration data, so it usually comes last. Older diesels deserve a second look before shipping, since the vehicle tax on them is also high; the pages on diesel car tax and on tax for older cars show the figures.
Driver, not keeper
The fine is addressed to the person who drove. The special keeper rule of Section 25a of the Road Traffic Act applies only to stopping and parking, not to the zone, so the keeper first receives a hearing form (Anhörungsbogen) and can name the driver. Like other traffic offences, the case becomes time-barred after 6 months unless the authority interrupts the period. The legal basis for every amount on this site is the annex to the fine catalogue ordinance, and the fine calculator adds up any other offence with its fees.