Regulations and vehicles

The rules apply to all diesel-powered vans regardless of the colour of the license plate.

The low emission zone rules for vans came into force on 1^st July 2020.

As of 1st July 2023, vans must be registered on 1^st September 2016 or later to be able to legally access the low emission zones.

For vans which are at least Euro 5, the particulate filter requirement is considered to be met and these vehicles are allowed to use in the low emission zones.
Vans registered before the above cut-off dates must have a particulate filter fitted which must be registered in the Danish Register of Motor Vehicles (DMR) to legally access the low emission zones.

Non-Danish vehicles that do not meet the date requirements must always be registered online.

The rules in the low emission zones do not apply to:

• Vehicles registered in Denmark as vintage. This must be stated in the Danish Register of Motor Vehicles (DMR).

• Non-Danish vehicles, which are more than 30 years old.

• Vehicles used by the military, police, emergency services or similar emergency services, if these vehicles do not usually drive in a low emission zone and there is an extraordinary need to use the vehicle in a low emission zone, or the vehicle is used for training activities.

  The Danish Environmental Protection Agency must be contacted as soon as possible after an extraordinary need for use of a vehicle in a low emission zone or use of a vehicle for training activities. For further guidance the Danish Environmental Protection Agency must also be contacted.

Retrofitting a particulate filters in Danish vans

You must contact a workshop if you want to retrofit a diesel particulate filter to your van. Once the filter is fitted, it must be registered by an inspection centre. At the inspection centre, the filter is tested, and the inspection centre also ensures that the filter is registered in the Danish Register of Motor Vehicles (DMR).

There are no requirements for the type of particulate filter that must be fitted to a vehicle in order for it to meet the low emission zone requirements. Vans may get both open and closed particulate filters retrofitted.

Please, note that not all particulate filters are approved for all car models, which is why some vans may need to be retrofitted with a more expensive, closed particulate filter if they are to be used in the low emission zones.

Open particulate filters are cheaper than closed filters, but they do not filtrate equally efficient. If approved for your vehicle, open particulate filters can usually be ordered and installed by a mechanic, while closed particulate filters must be ordered from specialist particulate filter fitters and can be installed on the vast majority of vehicles.

The detailed rules for retrofitting particulate filters for vans are laid down in:

In special cases, it is possible to register an exemption or apply for a dispensation. Please, note that some exemption options require that it is not possible to retrofit a particulate filter to the vehicle.