Kilometre charge for heavy goods vehicles

Owners of certain types of heavy goods vehicles (HGV’s) must pay a kilometre charge if they want to drive on motorways and on some regional and municipal roads in Belgium.

Conditions

Vehicles subject to the kilometre charge

A pulling vehicle’s Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW) determines whether this vehicle is subject to the kilometre charge or not. The following HGV’s are subject to the kilometre charge:

all HGV’s with a GVW of more than 3.5 tons
semitrailer towing vehicles of under or equal to 3.5 tons GVW with a body code BC.

All vehicles subject to the kilometre charge must be equipped with a switched-on OBU (On Board Unit) on all Belgian roads. You also must mention the right Euro emission norm in your OBU. If you do not do so, a fine can be levied.

You can find all Belgian toll roads on maps available on the Viapass website(opens in new window).

Exemptions

Certain categories of vehicles are entitled to an exemption from the kilometre charge: vehicles used exclusively by the army, civil defence, fire department and police; vehicles especially and exclusively equipped for medical purposes; vehicles used exclusively for agriculture, horticulture, fish farming and forestry.

Exemption is not automatic: the vehicle’s owner has to submit an application to be exempted from the kilometre charge.

Vehicles not subject to the kilometer charge

Some vehicles of more than 3.5 tons are not subject to the kilometre charge:

machinevehicles to the extent that they do not transport goods, such as cranes, telehandlers / lifts, excavators, bulldozers, concrete pumps without mixer, dumpers;
vehicles with a test drive license plate type ZZ;
oldtimer vehicles with a 0-license plate;
motorhomes;
training vehicles insofar they meet the following conditions:
- they have dual controls in the cabin
- they carry no goods (except for educational purposes, such as concrete blocks)
- they are externally recognizable by the name “driving school” on the cabin
- they are registered in the name of a driving school or a social fund for Transportation and Logistics.

Vehicles which are not subject to the kilometre charge do not have to be equipped with an OBU.

And other taxes?

In Belgium, the kilometre fee replaces the Eurovignette for HGV’s. In the Netherlands, Luxemburg, Denmark and Sweden, you still need a Eurovignette to transport heavy goods.
Vehicles with a gross vehicle weight (GVW) of between 3.5 and 12 tons are only subject to the kilometre charge and no longer to road tax.
Vehicles with a GVW of more than 12 tons are still subject to the annual road tax for vehicles requiring prior registration in addition to the kilometre charge.

Procedure

All vehicles subject to the kilometre charge must be equipped with a switched-on OBU (On Board Unit) on all Belgian roads. You also must mention the right Euro emission norm in your OBU.

You can obtain an OBU from the following serviceproviders:

Cost

On Board Unit (OBU)

Please contact your serviceprovider for the cost of installing an OBU.
The use of an OBU as such is free.

Tariffs

Applicable tariffs in Flanders, Brussels and Wallonia(opens in new window) can be found on the Viapass website.