The Low-emission Zone - Berlin-specific Exemptions from Driving Ban

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Individual exemptions from 01.01.2015 onwards

Only vehicles with a green sticker are allowed to enter Berlin's low-emission zone since 1 January 2010. Individual exemptions may be applied for in certain circumstances in order to lessen any social or economic hardship caused by the driving ban.

Each exemption to the driving ban for cars and trucks with high pollutant emissions lowers the effects of the low-emission zone. It was therefore decided on adoption of the 2011-2017 clean air plan that most exemptions would cease to apply from 2015 onwards.

From 01.01.2015 onwards individual exemptions will only be granted in the following cases:

• for vehicles belonging to people suffering from impaired mobility (severely disabled persons with the mark "G") on low incomes.
• for vehicles belonging to people suffering from impaired mobility (severely disabled persons with the mark "H").
• for special vehicles with attributed business idea or with extensive vehicle conversions and low mileage within the low emission zone.

The exemptions are usually granted for the maximum of two years. Thereafter a new exemption can be applied for, provided no new regulations will be enacted.

The following conditions must generally all apply for an individual exemption to be issued:

• The vehicle cannot be retrofitted to obtain a green sticker.
• The vehicle was registered in the applicant's name
  
  • before 1 March 2007:
    vehicles of emission group 1 (without sticker) or 2 (red sticker)
  • before 1 November 2014:
    Euro 3 vehicles that cannot be retrofitted (yellow sticker) and special vehicles with attributed business idea independent of their emission group.

Further details and information on the documents to be submitted can be found in the leaflets relating to the applications forms:

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What forms and what documents do I need to present for individual exemptions for stage 2?

The prescribed application forms must be used for the application. They can be obtained from the relevant borough offices or downloaded:

For that the vehicle's motor vehicle registration certificate part 1 (registration document) is required in all cases. In cases where one of the reasons for an exemption is the impossibility of retrofitting the vehicle, a certificate confirming that the vehicle cannot be retrofitted must be issued by a technical inspection agency for motor traffic. These are the inspection agencies of TÜV and Dekra in Berlin, the TÜV inspection agencies in the former West German federal states and Dekra in the newly formed German states.
Note: certificates issued by workshops or manufacturers confirming the impossibility of retrofitting will not be recognised.
You can download a list of technical inspection agencies in Berlin here:
You can obtain more information from the relevant borough offices.

The data required for the decision about the application are subject to data protection legislation and will be treated confidentially.

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Where can I apply for an exemption for the low-emission zone?

The boroughs in the low-emission zone are responsible for issuing individual exemptions. These are the boroughs of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg, Lichtenberg, Mitte, Neukölln, Pankow, Tempelhof-Schöneberg and Treptow-Köpenick. The application for an individual exemption may only be submitted to one local borough road traffic authority. An exemption issued by one borough is valid for the entire Berlin low-emission zone.
You can find a list of the addresses here:

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What fees will be charged for an individual exemption?

The fees vary according to the administrative effort involved and the economic benefit. An economic benefit arises from the fact that the costs of retrofitting are not incurred or that the purchase of a replacement can be effected at a later date. The fee therefore depends on the type of vehicle, its use (private or commercial) and the duration of the exemption. The following document contains an initial summary of the probable levels of fees Table (Download pdf; 106 KB).

For more information please ask the responsible boroughs or write an email to umweltzone@senuvk.berlin.de