Denmark’s largest electric car fair opened at Messecenter Herning on October 3, 2026, with planned registration tax increases on electric cars priced above 366,000 kroner dominating visitors’ questions.
The fair runs until Sunday, and according to reporting by DR, the mood is shaped by taxes rather than new models. The government has said it will let registration taxes rise after New Year on the most expensive electric cars, meaning those costing more than 366,000 kroner.
Mads Rørvig, director of the industry organization Mobility Denmark, told DR that taxes were the most discussed subject at the fair. Per Rørvig, it is not only expensive models that are affected, but also the best selling family cars, which face a considerable tax increase.
Buyers ask about delivery dates
DR reports that visitors are focused on delivery times, asking whether they can take possession of a car before the higher tax applies. Rørvig said some buyers will make it and others will not, and that importers are doing what they can to get cars into Denmark.
One visitor, Benedikte Christensen from Espergærde, told DR she expects the new taxes to influence which electric car she chooses. She also said the state risks undermining its own green goals by raising prices, and that she is waiting to see what actually happens.
What the planned tax change involves
According to TV 2, the government intends to resume the gradual phase in of registration tax on electric cars from January 2027. The increase had previously been postponed by one year, TV 2 reports.
Under the proposed change described by TV 2, the price threshold below which electric cars are exempt from registration tax would fall from about 419,300 kroner to 366,200 kroner on January 1, 2027. That lower threshold is the figure now being discussed by buyers and dealers in Herning.
Mobility Denmark calculated in September 2026 that the change could make a Volkswagen ID.4 roughly 10,300 kroner more expensive. The same calculation put the increase for a Tesla Model Y at almost 28,000 kroner.
What the EV tax change means for internationals in Denmark
Denmark charges registration tax, known as registreringsafgift, when a vehicle is first registered for use on Danish roads. It is collected by Skattestyrelsen and is one reason new car prices in Denmark are higher than in most neighboring countries. For electric cars, a share of the tax has been phased in gradually, with a price threshold below which no registration tax applies.
For foreign residents, the practical point raised at the fair is timing rather than paperwork. DR reports that whether a buyer avoids the higher rate depends on when the car is actually delivered and registered, and importers say that varies by model. If you are weighing the total cost of owning a car here, the sourced figures above apply only to the models Mobility Denmark named.
Newcomers who import a vehicle when moving to Denmark face a separate process from buying a new electric car at a Danish dealer. Our guide to buying a car in Denmark as a foreigner covers registration and plates. The final text of the tax change has not been reported as adopted, and TV 2’s figures describe the government’s plan.
