The first European emissions standard for passenger cars was introduced in 1970.

It wasn’t until 1992 that a significant update arrived with ‘Euro 1,’ which mandated catalytic converters in petrol cars to cut carbon monoxide (CO) emissions.

The most recent standard, ‘Euro 6,’ was introduced in September 2014 for new type approvals and applied to all new cars from September 2015. This standard reduces certain pollutants by up to 96% compared to the 1992 limits.

From September 2017, the Euro 6 test became stricter with the inclusion of Real Driving Emissions (RDE), an extended on-road emissions test.

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The dates listed below indicate when the standard applied to new vehicle type approvals. The dates in brackets show when it applied to all new vehicle registrations, typically a year later. Cars registered between these dates may comply with the relevant emissions standard.

CO – Carbon Monoxide
NOx – Nitrogen Oxides
HC – Hydrocarbons
PM – Particulate Matter

Euro 1 (EC93)

July 1992 (January 1993)
Euro 1 introduced unleaded petrol and required catalytic converters to reduce CO emissions.

Euro 1 emission limits CO – 2.72 g/km (petrol and diesel) HC+ NOx – 0.97 g/km (petrol and diesel) PM – 0.14 g/km (diesel only)

Euro 2 (EC96)

January 1996 (January 1997)
Euro 2 further tightened CO and HC+NOx limits, with separate restrictions for petrol and diesel.

Euro 2 emission limits (petrol) CO – 2.2 g/km HC+ NOx – 0.5 g/km Euro 2 emission limits (diesel) CO – 1.0 g/km HC+ NOx – 0.7 g/km PM – 0.08 g/km

Euro 3 (EC2000)

January 2000 (January 2001)
Euro 3 removed the engine warm-up phase from testing and introduced individual HC and NOx limits for petrol engines. A separate NOx limit for diesel engines was also established.

Euro 3 emission limits (petrol) CO – 2.3 g/km HC – 0.20 g/km NOx – 0.15 g/km Euro 3 emission limits (diesel) CO – 0.64 g/km HC+ NOx – 0.56 g/km NOx – 0.50 g/km PM – 0.05 g/km

Euro 4 (EC2005)

January 2005 (January 2006)
Euro 4 focused on reducing NOx and particulate emissions from diesel cars. Some diesel vehicles were equipped with particulate filters.

Euro 4 emission limits (petrol) CO – 1.0 g/km HC – 0.10 g/km NOx – 0.08 g/km Euro 4 emission limits (diesel) CO – 0.50 g/km HC+ NOx – 0.30 g/km NOx – 0.25 g/km PM – 0.025 g/km

Euro 6

September 2014 (September 2015)
Euro 6 significantly cut NOx emissions from diesel engines (67% reduction from Euro 5), aligning petrol and diesel limits. Diesel cars use advanced systems like SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) and AdBlue to reduce NOx.

Euro 6 emission limits (diesel) CO – 0.50 g/km HC+ NOx – 0.17 g/km NOx – 0.08 g/km