When is my MOT due?
Enter the registration and see the MOT due date in words, the days left (or how long ago it ran out), the tax due date and the last test result and mileage. Free, from DVLA and DVSA records, no email.
Enter a registration
When is my MOT due?
Enter the registration above and the page shows the date in words, with the days left. The date is the later of the MOT expiry DVLA holds and the expiry on the latest passed DVSA test, because DVLA can lag a fresh pass by a day or more. A car under 3 years old with no test yet shows its first MOT due date instead.
How MOT expiry works
A car needs its first MOT by the third anniversary of its registration in England, Scotland and Wales (4 years in Northern Ireland), then a test every year. Each pass gives a certificate that runs to the anniversary of the old expiry date, so the due date stays the same from year to year as long as the test is taken in the month before it runs out.
- Testing early. You can get an MOT up to a month (minus a day) before it runs out and keep the same renewal date. Any earlier and the renewal date moves to one year (minus a day) from the date the car passed.
- No grace period. Once the MOT has run out the car cannot be driven or parked on the road. GOV.UK gives two exceptions: driving to a pre-arranged MOT test, and driving to or from somewhere to be repaired. The fine for driving without a valid MOT is up to £1,000.
- Fails. A fail does not end the old certificate. GOV.UK says you can take the car away if the current MOT is still valid and no dangerous problem was listed; with a dangerous problem it must be repaired before it is driven, and the fine for driving it is up to £2,500.
- The date on this page. It is the later of the expiry DVLA holds and the expiry on the latest passed DVSA test, so it follows a fresh pass as soon as DVSA records it.
For the full list of tests, with the mileage at each and how many advisories it carried, use the MOT history check. To see the tax status and MOT together, use check MOT and tax. For the email before it runs out, the free MOT reminder is on this page after a lookup.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about MOT due date on Carhealth
Enter the registration above and the page shows the date in words, with the days left. The date is the later of the MOT expiry DVLA holds and the expiry on the latest passed DVSA test, because DVLA can lag a fresh pass by a day or more. A car under 3 years old with no test yet shows its first MOT due date instead.
GOV.UK says you can get an MOT up to a month (minus a day) before it runs out and keep the same renewal date. If the MOT runs out on 15 May, the earliest date that keeps 15 May as the renewal date is 16 April. Test earlier than that and GOV.UK says the renewal date changes to one year (minus a day) from the date the car passed.
No. GOV.UK gives no grace period. Once the MOT has run out the car cannot be driven or parked on the road, with two exceptions: driving to a pre-arranged MOT test, and driving to or from somewhere to be repaired. The fine for driving without a valid MOT is up to £1,000.
By the third anniversary of its registration in England, Scotland and Wales, then every year. In Northern Ireland the first test is at 4 years. For a car with no test on record this page shows the first MOT due date DVSA states, or works it out from the month DVLA first registered the car.
It shows the last test's result, date and mileage. The MOT history check lists every test with its mileage and how many advisories each carried. The wording of each advisory and failure is in the full Carhealth report.
Yes. After a lookup, open the free MOT reminder on this page and enter your email. You get an email 30 days and 7 days before the car is due its MOT. GOV.UK runs its own reminder service too.
A pass taken early, within the month before expiry, keeps the old renewal date, so the new certificate shows next year's anniversary. The page uses the later of DVLA's date and the latest pass, so it follows a fresh pass as soon as DVSA records it. If DVLA has not caught up yet, the two can differ for a day or two.
Sources
- DVLA: Vehicle Enquiry ServiceThe MOT expiry date and the tax status and due date DVLA holds for the registration you enter, read at the moment you enter it.
- DVSA: MOT historyEvery test, result, expiry date and odometer reading. Where DVLA lags a fresh pass, the latest passed test sets the date shown here. Records cover car tests since 2005 in England, Scotland and Wales and since 2017 in Northern Ireland.
- GOV.UK: Getting an MOTThe first MOT by the third anniversary of registration, the one month (minus a day) early-test rule, the up to £1,000 fine, the two exceptions for driving without an MOT (to a pre-arranged test, or to or from a repair), and the rule for a fail while the old MOT is still valid (gov.uk/getting-an-mot/after-the-test). Checked 11 November 2026.
Related guides
Plain-English reading on this check, from the Carhealth blog.