Westminster Congestion Charge Discount: the 2027 Deadline

If you live inside the Congestion Charge zone and you have not registered for the residents’ discount, there is now a date that should be in your diary. The discount takes the daily charge from £18 to £1.80, and on 1 March 2027 the rules change for new applicants only: from that date the 90% discount will apply to electric vehicles only. Anyone already holding the discount keeps it for any vehicle type, including replacement cars, for as long as they keep renewing it each year.

That makes the next few months a genuine window. Register before 1 March 2027 with the petrol or diesel car you currently drive and you keep 90% off indefinitely. Leave it until afterwards and, unless you are on one of the qualifying benefits, you will need an electric vehicle to get the same deal.

What the discount is worth

The daily Congestion Charge rose to £18 on 2 January 2026, its first increase since 2020. TfL’s own figures put the current charges at:

The saving is £16.20 for every day you drive in the zone. Drive in twice a week and the discount is worth over £1,600 a year against the full charge, for a £10 annual registration fee. Even a resident who only uses the car at weekends is well ahead, because the charge now applies on Saturdays and Sundays too.

Note where the residents’ discount sits relative to the electric vehicle discount. The 100% Cleaner Vehicle Discount ended, and its replacement gives electric cars 25% off, so an EV driver pays £13.50. A resident with the 90% discount pays £1.80 whatever they drive. The residents’ discount is by a wide margin the better one to hold, which is the whole point of registering before the rules tighten.

What changes on 1 March 2027, exactly

TfL has published this in full, and the detail matters because the headlines have flattened it.

Existing discount holders. You keep the 90% discount for all vehicle types, including new and replacement vehicles, whether electric or not. There is no change for you provided the discount is renewed each year. Miss a renewal after March 2027 and you are a new applicant again, which is the trap.

New applicants from 1 March 2027. The 90% discount will apply to electric vehicles only.

The benefits exception. Residents receiving certain low income and disability benefits will still be able to add non-electric vehicles to their discount, provided they apply before 4 March 2030. The qualifying benefits TfL lists are Attendance Allowance, Carer’s Allowance, Disability Living Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance, Personal Independence Payment, State Pension Credit and Universal Credit.

There is a second change worth knowing about, because it affects what £1.80 becomes in future. The Mayor’s guidance has been revised so that routine changes to London’s road user charging schemes can be made without public consultation, and the Congestion Charge could be raised each year in line with Tube fares, which is inflation plus one per cent, or by less. Any rise still needs a decision by TfL and the Mayor, and it applies to the Congestion Charge only, not the ULEZ.

Which parts of Westminster are actually in the zone

This is where Westminster residents get caught, because the borough straddles the boundary and roughly half of it is outside.

The zone is the area enclosed by the Inner Ring Road. In Westminster terms the northern edge is Marylebone Road and Euston Road, the western edge runs down Edgware Road and Park Lane, the south-western edge follows Vauxhall Bridge Road, and the southern edge is the river. That puts Mayfair, Soho, St James’s, Whitehall, Victoria, Fitzrovia south of Euston Road and the streets around Charing Cross inside the zone. It puts Paddington, Bayswater, Maida Vale, Little Venice, St John’s Wood, Queen’s Park and Marylebone north of Marylebone Road outside it, along with most of Pimlico south-west of Vauxhall Bridge Road.

Two things follow from that geometry:

• The boundary roads themselves are not charged. TfL’s zone map shows the Inner Ring Road as outside the zone, so driving the length of Marylebone Road, Euston Road, Park Lane or Vauxhall Bridge Road costs nothing. Turning off into the streets they enclose is what triggers the charge.
• The residents’ discount zone is slightly wider than the charging zone, so some addresses just outside the charged area still qualify. This is the single most common reason a Westminster resident wrongly assumes they are not eligible.

Do not work it out from a map. TfL runs a postcode checker that returns a definitive answer for an individual address, and it is the only version worth relying on if your street is anywhere near the line.

Who qualifies, and on what vehicle

To get the 90% discount, TfL requires all of the following:

• Your address is inside the Congestion Charge residents’ discount zone, per the checker.
• Your name appears on either the Parliamentary or the local government electoral register.
• The property is your main or permanent home and is used for residential purposes.
• You are at least 17 years old.

On the vehicle, there is more flexibility than most people realise:

• Your own car must be registered with the DVLA in your name at the address you are applying from.
• A company car or lease vehicle can be registered if it is for your sole use, with a company letter on headed paper naming you and the registration, or the lease document.
• No car at all is not a barrier. If you do not own a vehicle you can still register the discount against a hire car or a recognised car club vehicle that you use occasionally. In a borough where a large share of households have no car, this is the most overlooked part of the scheme.

There is also a new 100% discount for electric car club vehicles picked up and returned to the same bay inside the zone, which is worth knowing if you use a Westminster car club bay rather than owning.

The documents, and the £10

You need to prove your address and your vehicle.

For the address, two items from TfL’s list: a current resident’s on-street parking permit or permit approval letter showing the registration, a residential council tax bill valid for the current year, an income support entitlement letter under seven months old, a bank or credit card statement under three months old, a formal tenancy agreement or housing association rent document dated within the last twelve months, a current utility bill under three months old (mobile phone bills are not accepted), or a driving licence showing that address.

For the vehicle, one item: the V5C logbook in your name at that address, a company car authorisation letter, or the lease agreement.

The cost is a £10 registration charge per year. To actually pay the discounted £1.80 you need to set up Auto Pay, which is free and means you only pay on the days you drive. Without it you are exposed to penalty charge notices for days you forget.

If you have just moved in and do not yet have the paperwork, you can apply anyway and supply documents later. You pay the full charge in the meantime, and subject to the terms you may be able to claim a 90% refund of what you paid while waiting.

Three things the discount does not cover

ULEZ is separate. If your vehicle does not meet the Ultra Low Emission Zone standards you pay the ULEZ charge as well, and the residents’ discount does nothing for it. ULEZ runs 24 hours a day, every day except Christmas Day, across every London borough.

The Blackwall and Silvertown tunnels are separate. TfL lists the Congestion Charge residents’ discount as a 0% discount on the tunnels charge. The tunnel residents’ discount is a different scheme for east London boroughs.

Parking is separate again. The discount has nothing to do with a resident parking permit, which Westminster charges for by emissions band. Our guides to the resident parking permit cost and pay to park prices cover those, and the two together are what actually determines the cost of keeping a car here.

When the charge applies

Worth committing to memory, because the weekend hours catch people out:

• 07:00 to 18:00, Monday to Friday.
• 12:00 to 18:00, Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays.
• No charge at all from Christmas Day to the New Year’s Day bank holiday inclusive.

Outside those hours the zone is free for everyone, discount or not. For live disruption and closures in the borough, our roadworks and travel page is updated through the week, and tube and train times covers the alternative.

Frequently asked questions

How much is the Congestion Charge with the Westminster residents’ discount? £1.80 a day instead of £18. The discount is 90% off the daily charge, and it costs £10 a year to register the vehicle. You also need Auto Pay set up to be billed at the discounted rate.

Is the residents’ discount changing? Yes, but only for new applicants. From 1 March 2027 the 90% discount will apply to electric vehicles only. Existing holders keep it for any vehicle type, including replacement vehicles, as long as they renew each year. Residents on qualifying low income or disability benefits can still add non-electric vehicles if they apply before 4 March 2030.

Do I have to live inside the charging zone to get the discount? Not exactly. You have to live inside the Congestion Charge residents’ discount zone, which is slightly wider than the charged area, so some addresses just outside the zone qualify. Check your specific postcode with TfL’s checker rather than relying on a map.

Which parts of Westminster are in the Congestion Charge zone? Mayfair, Soho, St James’s, Whitehall, Victoria and the area south of Euston Road and Marylebone Road are inside. Paddington, Bayswater, Maida Vale, St John’s Wood, Queen’s Park, Marylebone north of Marylebone Road and most of Pimlico south-west of Vauxhall Bridge Road are outside. The boundary roads themselves are not charged.

Can I get the residents’ discount if I do not own a car? Yes. TfL allows residents without a vehicle to register the discount against a hire car or a recognised car club vehicle they use occasionally. There is also a new 100% discount for electric car club vehicles collected and returned to the same bay inside the zone.

Do the residents’ discount and the electric vehicle discount add up? There is no need for them to. The residents’ discount is 90%, taking the charge to £1.80, while the new Cleaner Vehicle Discount is 25% for an electric car on Auto Pay, taking it to £13.50. If you qualify as a resident, that is the discount to hold whatever you drive.