The Air Quality Certificate is a secure document issued on the basis of information which appears on the vehicle registration certificate . It certifies the vehicle’s environmental class based on pollutant emissions.
Order your CRIT’Air clean air sticker early if you expect to be driving in France. Paris, Lyon, Lille, Marseille, Toulouse, Chambery, and Grenoble have recently been added to the growing number of low emissions zones affecting UK-registered vehicles in Europe.
Drivers within the restricted area in one of these cities have to display the appropriate Vignette (sticker) in their windscreen or face a fine – In Paris for example cars are banned on weekdays between 8am and 8pm unless they display at least a CRIT’Air 3 sticker.
If you’re heading to France by car and there’s even only a small chance you might be driving in one of these restricted areas we’d advise applying for the sticker so that you’re covered.
Without the sticker you could be fined but don’t leave applying to the last minute as we’ve heard reports that the French authorities are struggling to cope with demand for Vignettes resulting in significant delay beyond the estimated 30-day delivery time.
Low emission zones are being introduced across France and so far affect Paris, Lyon, Lille, Grenoble, Strasbourg, Toulouse, Marseille, and Chambéry.
The zones restrict access to all types of vehicles including passenger cars and motorcycles. To drive in one of these restricted areas without a penalty, you’ll have to display the appropriate ‘Vignette’ (sticker) in your windscreen.
There are six different types of sticker depending on the emissions standard of your vehicle and each zone sets it’s own minimum ‘sticker’ requirement for entry.
To get the Crit’Air sticker you’ll need to provide some of the information on your V5c registration document.
Restrictions will be tightened progressively in the coming years.
The French Crit’Air vignettes form a multi-category sticker system that’s used to identify a vehicle’s air pollutant emissions. The least polluting vehicles are afforded preferential parking and traffic conditions.
There are six categories in the Crit’Air vignette system. These range from green for the cleanest through to dark grey for the dirtiest and relate to Euro emissions standards.
Crit’Air categories:
Green – Crit’Air E (zero emissions – electric and hydrogen vehicles)
Purple – Crit’Air 1 (gas and rechargeable hybrid vehicles)
Yellow – Crit’Air 2 (Euro 5 and Euro 6 vehicles)
Orange – Crit’Air 3 (Euro 4 vehicles)
Burgundy – Crit’Air 4 (Euro 3 vehicles)
Dark Grey – Crit’Air 5 (Euro 2 vehicles)
The system has been introduced by the French government as a way to reduce harmful vehicle emissions in areas where air quality is poorest, such as larger towns and cities.
In these areas, certain vehicles can be refused entry based on the Crit’Air sticker displayed on the windscreen – either all the time or on certain days where air pollution levels are dangerously high.
