Starting Wednesday, July 1, the grace period in Brussels will officially end, and the tax authorities will begin issuing fines to the latest group of drivers who violate the low-emission zone (LEZ) standards.
Specifically, more than 13,000 vehicles – Euro 5 diesel and Euro 2 gasoline cars that received a warning earlier this year – risk a €350 fine, which will then count as a pass for 12 months.
AutoScout24 also points to another striking trend: despite the stricter LEZ regulations, more than 2,200 used diesel cars have been registered in Brussels since the beginning of 2026, a quarter of which are already in violation.
€350 for an annual pass
Actually, Euro 5 diesel cars and Euro 2 gasoline cars had been banned in the Brussels low -emission zone since January 1, 2026, but due to legal uncertainty.
The Brussels Parliament initially postponed implementation of this category until 2027, but the Constitutional Court overturned that postponement, finding it violated the right to health and a healthy environment – enforcement was postponed.
However, starting tomorrow, violators will face a fixed fine of €350, which, once paid, will serve as an annual pass.
Across Belgium, approximately 630,000 Euro 5 diesel and Euro 2 gasoline vehicles registered are no longer permitted to drive in the Brussels LEZ, of which 23,300 are registered in the Brussels Region.
Impact less severe than expected
And although there were initial fears that more Belgian cars would be affected by the stricter regulations, the impact in practice has been less severe than expected. By May 2026, only an average of 2.9% of passenger cars driving in Brussels daily violated the rules.
This low percentage is due to many drivers anticipating the rules and to the rapid decline in the share of diesel vehicles in the market.
Sales of (new) diesel cars have virtually collapsed, accounting for just 3% of registrations, but this ‘free fall’ of the diesel engine in Belgium is also directly linked to the massive rise of electric cars. EVs now account for nearly 35% of all new vehicle registrations in Belgium.
In any case, the LEZ has a strong steering effect on the Belgian market, especially in large cities with a LEZ, says the online sales platform AutoScoot24 in an analysis.
Whereas in Brussels, which has the strictest LEZ rules in the country, nearly three-quarters, or 76%, of the diesel vehicles registered since the beginning of the year are recent models registered after 2015, that share is lower in the other provinces directly linked to the LEZs, at 60% for Antwerp and 59% for Ghent/East Flanders.
Inexpensive diesel cars remain popular despite the ban
However, that doesn’t rule out a few surprises. For example, according to AutoScoot24, 2,215 used diesel vehicles were still registered in Brussels between the beginning of the year and the end of April.
What’s even more striking is that one in four of these cars was first registered before 2015, meaning some Brussels residents are still deliberately buying used diesel cars even though they may no longer be welcome in their own city.
AutoScoot24 attributes this phenomenon to the sharp price drop for such vehicles, by at least 9% on its own platform, and to the fact that diesel cars are often nearly 20% cheaper than comparable gasoline-powered cars.
For those on a tight budget, a cheap used diesel car is indeed sometimes literally the only option that fits within their budget. Figures like these naturally fuel the debate on the need for social adjustments or a ‘Leasing Social’ program, as in France, to make electric driving affordable for lower-income earners as well.
But what is a forced stopgap solution for one person may be a rational cost-benefit analysis for another: better to pay a 350-euro annual fine than to invest tens of thousands of euros in a new car.
The uncertainty surrounding the effective date of the ban, grace periods, and exemption rules has undoubtedly also played a role in some drivers’ decisions.
