Is it Mandatory to Have the DGT Environmental Label?

The DGT environmental label is a tag that classifies vehicles based on their pollutant emissions. This label was created to reduce environmental pollution in Spanish cities. Depending on its classification, this label also serves to regulate access to Low Emission Zones (LEZ).

The classification of vehicles through the environmental label aims to positively discriminate in favor of vehicles that are more environmentally friendly and serves as an effective tool for municipal policies. These policies can be restrictive during high pollution episodes or promote new technologies through tax benefits or mobility and environmental incentives.

In some cities, this environmental label is already being used to restrict traffic on high pollution days, prohibiting vehicles without the label from circulating.

The General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) has classified vehicles based on their emissions, assigning them different environmental labels (Zero Emissions, ECO, C, B).

Each city council is responsible for regulating its own LEZ, so restrictions and schedules may vary from one city to another. Regarding environmental labels, many users are uncertain about their mandatory nature.

According to the DGT, it is not mandatory, but it is up to Spanish municipalities to limit circulation based on the corresponding label. Therefore, it is advisable to place the sticker on the car's windshield or on the motorcycle in a clearly visible spot.

If you travel abroad, the Spanish label is not recognized in countries like Germany, Austria, Denmark, or France. In this case, you should consult the regulations of the destination country or those you plan to travel through. Conversely, if you come to Spain with a label from another country, you only need to know the label equivalence.

However, not all vehicles are eligible for this label, as is the case with those registered before the year 2000 for gasoline or diesel vehicles before 2006.

Currently, there are four types of labels, from most to least polluting.

Zero Emissions Label: Battery electric vehicles; extended-range electric vehicles; plug-in hybrid electric vehicles with a minimum range of 40 km; fuel cell vehicles.

ECO Label: Plug-in hybrid vehicles, gas or both with a range of less than 40 km; non-plug-in hybrid vehicles; vehicles powered by natural gas; vehicles powered by natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas.

C Label: Vehicles that comply with the latest EURO standards. This includes gasoline cars and light vans registered from January 2006; diesel cars and light vans registered from 2014; vehicles with more than eight seats and heavy vehicles, gasoline or diesel, registered from 2014.

B Label: Internal combustion vehicles that, although they do not meet all the latest EURO emission specifications, do comply with the previous ones. This includes gasoline cars and light vans registered since January 2001 and diesel from 2006. Also included in this label are vehicles with more than eight seats and heavy vehicles, gasoline or diesel, registered since 2006.

The label costs five euros and can be purchased at Post Offices, the network of workshops of the Spanish Confederation of Workshops (CETRAA) and other authorized workshop networks, Administrative Managers, or the Institute of Automotive Studies.