Which electric scooters need no licence in India: rule 2(u), explained

The short answer: an electric two-wheeler needs no driving licence, no registration, no number plate and no insurance only if it is certified under rule 2(u) of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989. The rule says a battery operated two-wheeler shall not be deemed a motor vehicle when its electric motor has a thirty minute power of less than 0.25 kW, its maximum speed is less than 25 km/h and its unladen weight excluding the battery is not more than 60 kg. It also needs suitable brakes and retro-reflective devices, a white reflector in front and a red one at the rear. All of this has to be verified by a testing agency specified in rule 126, which in practice means ARAI or ICAT.

Everything else sold as an electric scooter in India, an Ather Rizta, an Ola S1, a TVS iQube, a Bajaj Chetak, is a motor vehicle. It gets registered on Vahan, it needs a licence, third party insurance and a helmet.

The catch is the certificate, not the brochure

Obtaining an exemption type approval certificate from ARAI or ICAT is mandatory before a low speed electric two-wheeler can be sold, yet EVreporter has documented that many low speed EV makers never obtained one, and that state RTO staff are often unaware the certificate exists. The same report found a large share of these scooters are capable of 50 to 60 km/h, well past the 25 km/h ceiling that makes them exempt in the first place. On import volumes, it counted roughly 4 lakh low speed electric scooters coming in under three to four HSN codes in FY22 and the first quarter of FY23.

Enforcement has started in pockets. Maharashtra and Karnataka RTOs have begun acting on these vehicles, per the same report, so a Bengaluru buyer is more exposed than most. Autocar India has reported Kerala raids in 2023 where dealers fitted exempt scooters with 1,000 W motors while keeping their registration free status, with an estimated tax loss of ₹100 crore in a single RTO jurisdiction.

If your scooter is actually outside the rule 2(u) limits, it is an unregistered motor vehicle. Section 192 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 sets a fine of not less than ₹2,000 and up to ₹5,000 for a first offence, and up to ₹10,000 with possible imprisonment for a repeat offence. There is no insurance behind you either, which matters far more than the fine if you hit someone.

The 600 W draft, and why Yulu is unhappy

MoRTH issued a draft notification on 21 August 2026 to rework rule 2(u). Autocar Pro reports the draft keeps the 25 km/h speed ceiling and sets the motor cap at 0.6 kW on a thirty minute rating, and removes the 60 kg unladen weight limit altogether. Autocar India had reported earlier that testing agencies were weighing exactly this, higher power and a revised weight cap, with the speed limit left alone.

Yulu has filed formal objections, arguing that weight is a physically verifiable safeguard while a speed limit can be altered through electronic components, and asking for the 60 kg ceiling to be put back. Its worry is heavier two seat or cargo style machines entering the exempt category. The change was still a draft in the reporting I could read, so the 0.25 kW and 60 kg numbers remain the law for now.

What to ask a dealer

Ask for the exemption type approval certificate from ARAI or ICAT with your exact model name on it, and a copy with the invoice. Ask in writing what the certified top speed and thirty minute motor rating are. Refuse any offer to swap in a bigger motor or unlock speed after delivery, because that single change turns a licence free scooter into an unregistered motor vehicle, and the liability is yours, not the dealer's.

Sources