🚗 TÜV / HU Due Date Calculator (Germany)

The Hauptuntersuchung (HU) is the periodic roadworthiness inspection that German law requires for most registered vehicles under § 29 StVZO (Straßenverkehrs-Zulassungs-Ordnung). In everyday German the appointment is simply called "der TÜV", because TÜV is the best-known family of inspection organisations — but Dekra, GTÜ, KÜS and other licensed Prüforganisationen carry out exactly the same statutory test. Whichever organisation you choose, the deadlines come from the regulation, not from the workshop: a new car has its first HU 36 months (3 years) after the Erstzulassung (first registration), and every 24 months (2 years) after that.

The due date is visible to everyone: the hexagonal Prüfplakette (inspection plaque) on the rear number plate shows the month and year of the next HU, and the inspection must be completed by the last day of that month. When the car passes, the examiner fits a fresh plaque dated 24 months ahead of the inspection month — or 36 months for the very first one. If you like to plan ahead, an early inspection up to 2 months before the deadline is allowed, and the sticker then continues the original rhythm, so you do not lose time by being organised.

Missing the date is not a formality: driving a car once its due month has passed is an Ordnungswidrigkeit (an administrative offence) and can result in a fine, and an overdue plaque is exactly what roadside checks look for. Since 2018 the separate emissions test (AU) for most petrol cars has been merged into the HU — the "HU mit Abgasprüfung" — so for most drivers there is now just one appointment and one deadline to keep track of.

During the roughly hour-long test the examiner checks brakes, steering, lights, tyres, body condition and the exhaust system; a significant defect means a follow-up inspection (Nachuntersuchung) within a set period. Motorcycles, by contrast, are exempt from the HU altogether, while taxis, rental cars and trucks run on 12-month cycles — this page models the ordinary passenger car (PKW) rhythm of 36 months first, then 24.

If you are mapping out the full cost of running a car in Germany, the German Kfz-Steuer vehicle tax calculator and the fuel cost calculator cover the money side; this tool keeps the inspection date under control. Enter your Erstzulassung — and optionally the date of the last completed HU — and you get the next due date, the days remaining, and a sensible window in which to book the appointment.

Every HU deadline in this calculator follows one piece of arithmetic: take an anchor date, add the statutory interval in months, and finish at the end of that month. The anchor is the date of the last completed HU if you enter one; otherwise it is the Erstzulassung. The interval is 36 months for the first inspection of a new car and 24 months for every follow-up — you switch between the two with the radio buttons in the form.

Two worked calculations show the logic:

The second row is also the early-inspection case: the HU was done in May 2026 for a June 2026 deadline, and the new plaque runs from the inspection month, so the next due date lands at the end of May 2028 — within the allowance of up to 2 months early without shifting the rhythm.

Beyond the headline date the tool derives two values that make planning easier. Days remaining counts from today to the due date, so the number you see depends on the day you visit the page. The recommended booking window subtracts 56 days (8 weeks) from the due date: booking about eight weeks ahead is a practical recommendation — not a legal rule — that leaves comfortable slack at busy workshops while staying inside the early-inspection allowance. The status line then sorts your situation into three bands: more than 90 days means plenty of time, 0 to 90 days means it is time to plan the appointment, and a negative count means the inspection is overdue and driving on is an administrative offence (OWi).

The form is deliberately minimal. The Erstzulassung date is printed in the Zulassungsbescheinigung Teil I (the vehicle registration document you keep in the car). The last-HU field is optional: leave it empty for a first inspection and the calculator falls back to Erstzulassung plus 36 months; enter it to jump straight into the 24-month rhythm. The "first HU" option is preselected because new-car owners are the largest group of users — switch it off once the car is in the cycle.

Deadline logic of this kind works like other German date tools: the notice-period calculator for tenancies and employment counts notice periods instead of inspection intervals, the public holiday checker tells you which days the workshops are closed when you pick a slot, and the car loan calculator helps you plan the financing whose start date becomes a new Erstzulassung.

The statutory inspection intervals differ by vehicle type and use. Refer to the table below for the rhythm that applies in Germany — this calculator models the ordinary passenger car (PKW) rows.

Note: the 36/24-month rhythm applies to ordinary passenger cars; commercial use such as taxi or rental operation shortens the interval to 12 months regardless of vehicle type.

Three example registrations show how the due dates fall. The "then" column assumes the HU is passed in the due month each time, so the plaque keeps its rhythm.

Early-inspection example: a car due on 2026-06-30 that passes on 2026-05-10 receives a plaque dated May 2028, so the next due date is 2028-05-31 — within the 2-month early allowance the cycle simply continues.

The timeline shows a car first registered in June 2023: the first HU follows 36 months later, and every further inspection adds 24 months to the plaque month.

1. Find the Erstzulassung date in the Zulassungsbescheinigung Teil I and enter it as YYYY-MM-DD (for example 2023-06-15).
2. Leave the last-HU field empty for the first inspection of a new car, or enter the date of the most recently completed HU as YYYY-MM-DD.
3. Select the cycle: "First HU for a new car" applies the 36-month interval, "Follow-up HU" applies the 24-month rhythm.
4. Click Calculate to see the next due date at the end of the due month, the days remaining from today, and the recommended booking window.
5. Book the appointment in good time — about eight weeks before the due date is a comfortable, safe margin that still keeps the original cycle.

When is the first HU due for a new car in Germany?

For an ordinary passenger car (PKW), the first Hauptuntersuchung is due 36 months (3 years) after the Erstzulassung — the date of first registration. A car registered on 2023-06-15 therefore has its first HU due by 2026-06-30, because the deadline always falls at the end of the due month. After that the car moves into the 24-month cycle.

What does the month and year on the rear number plate mean?

The hexagonal Prüfplakette shows the NEXT due date, not the date of the last inspection: the HU must be completed by the last day of the month and year shown. When the car passes, the examiner sets the new plaque to the inspection month plus 24 months (plus 36 for a first inspection), which is why the sticker keeps marching forward in two-year steps.

How early can I have the HU done without losing time?

An early inspection up to 2 months before the deadline is allowed, and the sticker then continues the original rhythm, so you do not shorten your cycle by being punctual. Doing the HU even earlier is possible in practice, but the new due date then counts from the inspection month, so you effectively give away part of the interval.

What happens if I miss the HU due date?

Driving after the due month has passed is an Ordnungswidrigkeit — an administrative offence that can result in a fine. The overdue plaque is easy for the police to spot at roadside checks. Get the inspection done as soon as possible; the calculator shows a negative day count to flag exactly this situation.

Do motorcycles need an HU in Germany?

No. Motorcycles are exempt from the Hauptuntersuchung, so there is no plaque and no statutory interval to track. This calculator is built for passenger cars (PKW) and their 36-then-24-month rhythm.

Is the AU emissions test a separate appointment?

For most petrol cars the separate Abgasuntersuchung (AU) has been part of the HU since 2018 — the "HU mit Abgasprüfung" — so one appointment covers both and there is only a single deadline to remember. Older special cases aside, you only need to track the HU date.

Book about eight weeks before the due date. The last weeks of a due month are the busiest at every inspection organisation, because everyone who forgot the deadline suddenly needs a slot — booking early means shorter waits and no panic if a defect turns out to need a follow-up inspection (Nachuntersuchung).

Combine the HU with a service appointment. Many workshops offer inspection plus oil change or brake service in one visit, which saves a second trip and often catches wearing parts before they fail the test. Before you go, do a two-minute self-check: all lights, windscreen and washers, tyre condition and tread, and the horn. Small defects you find yourself can be fixed cheaply in advance instead of being written up on the report.

Bring the Zulassungsbescheinigung Teil I (the Fahrzeugschein) and check the new plaque before you leave the workshop: the month shown should match the interval you expect — inspection month plus 24, or plus 36 for a first inspection. If the month looks wrong, raise it with the examiner on the spot rather than discovering it at the next roadside check.

When buying a used car, read the plaque before anything else: a due date that has already passed means the seller should get the HU done, and a fresh plaque is a small sign that the car was cared for. Remember the boundaries of the system: motorcycles do not need an HU at all, and taxis, rental cars and trucks follow 12-month cycles that this calculator does not model. Because inspection organisations close on public holidays, cross-check your planned appointment with the German public holiday checker, especially in holiday-heavy months such as May. And if the result says overdue, treat it as the priority of the week: continuing to drive after the due month is an administrative offence and can result in a fine.

Two practical habits keep the date from sneaking up on you: put the due month in your calendar with a reminder set eight weeks ahead, and re-run this calculator after every completed inspection using the fresh HU date — the result then reflects the plaque you actually received rather than the cycle you expected. Households with two cars can track both in one sitting, since the arithmetic per vehicle takes seconds. And because the status line recalculates from today on every visit, a quick glance at this page is enough to know whether the inspection is comfortably ahead of you or already behind you.