Already increasing in many regions in 2025, the gray card could soon cost much more.
It is not only the tolls that will increase from February 1. This date is not the favorite of motorists because it corresponds each year to the new pricing of motorways. If the increase will be very contained in 2025, at 0.92% on average against 3% last year, this still represents an additional cost for many French people.
Entry in the second month of the year will also mark the application of new prices for the gray card. This document, compulsory to drive a motor vehicle, is already more expensive from 1er January for drivers in the Normandy, Corsica, Center-Val-de-Loire, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Aquitaine regions. A month later, three other regions will increase their prices.
Why is the registration certificate more expensive in 2025? Simply because several regions have decided to increase a tax, the regional tax, on which they have their hands. This tax applies to the power of each vehicle within the limit of 60 euros per tax horse. In the Grand Est region for example, the price for a tax horse will go from 48 to 60 euros from 1er FEBRUARY. If you buy a 5 -horsepower Renault Clio, whether new or used, the purchase of the registration card will cost you 60 euros more (5×12)! The new owner of a Peugeot 3008 of 7 horsepower will have to pay him an additional 84 euros (7×12). In Brittany the increase was set at 5 euros per tax horse, from 55 to 60, while it will be 6 euros in Reunion, the horse going from 51 to 57 euros.
These sensitive increases in the price of the gray card will therefore concern in 2025 motorists of 8 of the 18 French regions (departments and overseas regions included). But bad news over the head of all drivers. The government is considering, within the framework of the finance bill, to move the regional tax of the registration certificate. While the first discussions revolved around a new limit to 70 or 80 euros per tax horse -an already substantial increase -, the trend would today be to a complete displeasure of the tax and a floor set at 60 euros.
This would generate an automatic increase in the price of the gray card almost everywhere in France since in 2025 only the Grand Est regions, Normandy and Brittany reach the current ceiling of 60 euros. In all other regions, the tax horse rate should be at least 60 euros. In Hauts-de-France, where the tax horse today costs 35.20 euros, this would correspond to an increase of 41 %! Or 125 euros more to pay to obtain the gray card of a city car of 5 horses, 200 euros for a family SUV of 8 horses…
The question must be decided in the coming weeks or even in the coming days. The risk of a large additional expenditure hovers over the head of all motorists likely to change car. Except for those who choose to drive in electric because the registration certificate for green vehicles is almost free, barely fifteen euros for administrative costs. Until when?