The Motor Vehicles (Type Approval and Approval Marks) (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 2026

Increased the hourly rates for vehicle examinations and introduced new charges for specialist technical analysis and the use of government testing equipment.


These Regulations increase the fees charged by the Department for Transport for the examination and type approval of vehicles and vehicle parts.

The order establishes a two-tier hourly rate for DfT officers, introduces additional charges for the use of government-owned testing equipment, and defines new technical categories related to cyber security and automated driving systems.

These changes apply to vehicle manufacturers and entities seeking regulatory compliance for automotive components in England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

Arguments For

  • The instrument states that fee increases are necessary to cover the costs of technical analysis and examinations performed by Department for Transport officers.

  • Proponents argue that the introduction of a specific specialist fee rate reflects the increased complexity of evaluating modern vehicle technologies such as automated driving systems and cyber security management.

  • The document implies that charging for the use of government-owned equipment, such as climatic chambers and robotic platforms, ensures that the specific costs of providing high-tech testing facilities are recovered from the users of those services.

  • The explanatory note indicates that the financial impact is expected to be minimal, falling below the de minimis threshold for a full impact assessment.

Arguments Against

  • Manufacturers and automotive businesses may object to the significant increase in the standard hourly rate from £89 to £134, representing a rise of approximately 50%.

  • Legal scholars or industry bodies might question the ambiguity in the definition of 'technical analysis' or 'specialist' tasks, which could lead to disputes over which hourly rate applies to a specific examination.

  • Affected parties could express concern that the introduction of multiple cumulative fees—hourly rates plus equipment charges plus calibration fees—increases the overall cost of bringing new vehicle components to market.

  • Small-scale manufacturers may argue that the high daily rates for advanced equipment, such as £1,400 for a Guided Soft Target, create a financial barrier to testing innovative safety systems.

  1. -(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Motor Vehicles (Type Approval and Approval Marks) (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 and come into force on 1st November 2026.
  • (2) These Regulations extend to England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

2 The Motor Vehicles (Type Approval and Approval Marks) (Fees) Regulations 1999( 3 ) ('the 1999 Regulations') are amended as follows.

3 In regulation 3(2), in the appropriate places, insert the following definitions-

''control strategy' means an element or set of elements of design that is incorporated into the overall design of a vehicle or vehicle part for the purposes of controlling emissions or environmental performance;

'cyber security' means the condition in which road vehicles and their functions are protected from cyber threats to electrical or electronic components;

'cyber security management system' means a systematic risk-based approach defining organisational processes, responsibilities and governance to treat risk associated with cyber threats to vehicles;

'cyber threat' means the possibility of damage or disruption being caused to a computer network or system, which may result in harm or disruption to a system, organisation or individual;'

''risk' means the possibility that a cyber threat will exploit vulnerabilities of a vehicle;

'software update management system' means a systematic approach defining organisational processes and procedures for the delivery of software updates;

'specialist' means an officer of the Department for Transport who carries out technical analysis as part of an examination of a vehicle or vehicle part in respect of one of the following areas-

  • (a) emissions and environmental performance, including analysis of control strategies;
  • (b) cyber security and software updates, including analysis of cyber security management systems and software update management systems and associated processes;
  • (c) safety performance of advanced driver assistance systems and automated driving systems;
  • (d) scenario identification, modelling, or simulation to support the assessment of advanced driver assistance systems and automated driving systems; or
  • (e) setting the design and criteria for an examination to assess the performance of advanced driver assistance systems or automated driving systems;

'standard workshop equipment' means hand tools, lifting equipment and other equipment ordinarily used as part of an examination of a vehicle or vehicle part and which is not captured in one of the equipment groups specified in Column 1 of Schedule 6;

'technical analysis' means the work done to determine what is required of a vehicle or vehicle part in order to demonstrate it achieves regulatory compliance as regards its safety, security or environmental performance;'.

4 Regulation 4 is amended as follows-

(a) For paragraph (1), substitute-

  • '(1) Subject to the subsequent provisions of these Regulations, the fee is-

  • (a) £134 per hour, where an officer of the Department for Transport, other than a specialist, carries out the following work-

  • (i) the examination, or the supervision of an examination, of a vehicle or vehicle part; or

  • (ii) any associated administrative work (other than the issue of any document of a type specified in Schedule 3 or 4); and

  • (b) £192 per hour, where a specialist carries out the following work-

  • (i) technical analysis as part of an examination of a vehicle or vehicle part; or

  • (ii) any associated administrative work (other than the issue of any document of a type specified in Schedule 3 or 4).'.

  • (b) After paragraph (2), insert-

'(2A) Where the Secretary of State owns equipment that is used for the purposes of an examination to which paragraph (1) applies-

  • (a) an additional fee for use of equipment specified in Column 1 of Schedule 6 must be paid as specified in Column 4 of Schedule 6;
  • (b) an additional fee of £75 per examination must be paid where any reference instrument is used to calibrate or check equipment that is specified in Schedule 6; and
  • (c) an additional fee of £76 per examination must be paid where any standard workshop equipment is used.'.

5 In regulations 7(1), 7(3), 16(1) and 17(1), after 'regulation 4(1)' insert '(a) or (b)'.

6 After Schedule 4, insert-

'Schedule 6

Regulation 4(2A)

ADDITIONAL FEES WHERE EQUIPMENT IS OWNED BY THE SECRETARY OF STATE

| (1) Equipment Group | (2) Description of Equipment Group | (3) Fee no. | (4) Amount of Fee (£) | |---|---|---|---| | Braking equipment | Equipment used for braking examinations. | 90000 | 113 per examination | | Climatic chamber | Equipment used for examinations of vehicle windscreen washer bottles at controlled temperatures. | 90001 | 807 per examination | | Coordinate measurement machine | Equipment used to measure the dimensions of a product to compare it with engineering specifications. | 90002 | 197 per examination | | Data logger equipment | Equipment used to record the data gathered by other examination equipment listed in this Schedule. | 90003 | 111 per examination | | Electrical isolation resistance equipment | Equipment used to examine the electrical safety of a high voltage vehicle. | 90004 | 252 per examination | | Guided Soft Target | Robotic platform on which a soft target representing a passenger vehicle is mounted. | 90005 | 1,400 per day | | Launch Pad | Small robotic platform on which soft target dummies representing motorcycles, bicycles, adult and child pedestrians or other road users can be mounted. | 90006 | 800 per day | | Noise equipment | Equipment used for noise examinations. | 90007 | 304 per examination | | Steering effort meter | Equipment used for steering effort examinations. | 90008 | 223 per examination | | Structural examination equipment | Equipment used to examine the strength of towbars and rear or side underrun devices by initiating a large push force. | 90009 | 207 per examination | | Weather station and wind speed logger | Equipment used to record weather conditions before and during an examination outdoors. | 90010 | 239 per examination'

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