New purchases of electric cars to be subsidized again

The German government wants to subsidize new purchases of electric cars again. On January 19, Federal Environment Minister Carsten Schneider (SPD) presented the key points of the new regulation, as agreed with the other ministries and parties within the coalition. According to these, private households can apply for subsidies of between €1,500 and €6,000 for electric cars or certain plug-in hybrids that were newly registered on or after January 1, 2026. The prerequisite is that the taxable income does not exceed €80,000.

Both the purchase and leasing of new cars are eligible for subsidies. The available funds, totaling €3 billion, are sufficient for an estimated 800,000 subsidized vehicles in the period from 2026 to 2029. Subsidy applications can be submitted retroactively. The online portal for this is expected to go live in May 2026.

Basic subsidy for purely electric cars is €3,000

Private households are eligible for subsidies when purchasing or leasing a new vehicle with a purely battery-electric drive or certain vehicles with a plug-in hybrid drive or vehicles with a battery-electric drive and range extender. The subsidy is independent of the list price. The basic subsidy is €3,000 for battery-electric vehicles and €1,500 for plug-in hybrids or range extenders. In order for the latter two to be eligible, they must not emit more than 60 grams of CO2 per kilometer or must have an electric range of at least 80 kilometers. For the period from July 1, 2027, a change in the subsidy for plug-in hybrids newly registered after that date is being considered, which will be based on CO2 emissions in real-world operation in order to make the greatest possible contribution to climate protection and to provide an incentive for the widest possible use of electric drives. All subsidized vehicles must be kept for at least 36 months.

For applicants with children, the income limit increases to €90,000

The income limit is €80,000 in taxable annual household income. Tax assessment notices from previous years serve as proof. The sum corresponds to a monthly net household income of approximately €4,800 for single persons and €5,400 for married couples. The income limit increases by €5,000 per child to up to €90,000 in taxable annual household income.

For households with a maximum taxable annual household income of €60,000, there is a supplement to the basic subsidy of €1,000, and for households with a maximum taxable annual household income of €45,000, there is a further €1,000. The subsidy also increases by €500 per child, up to a maximum of €1,000 in total. Depending on the type of vehicle, family size, and income, a subsidy of between €1,500 and €6,000 is therefore possible. The social scale applies equally to purchases and leases. This means that the purchase of a purely electric car is subsidized with up to €6,000 in both cases.

The application for the subsidy can only be submitted after the vehicle has been registered. The application must be submitted to the applicant no later than one year after registration. In order to shorten the processing time and reduce the administrative burden, all necessary documents and information (e.g., income tax assessment) can be submitted by applicants in digital form.

Links (internal)

(only for subsidies for the purchase of electric cars)

• “Environmental bonus” for electric cars stopped prematurely (231203)
• “Solar power for electric vehicles” subsidy program exhausted in a few hours (230901)
• 9.5 billion euros spent on “environmental bonus” to date (230902)
• Habeck extends “innovation bonus” for electric cars by one year (211208)
• Electric car subsidies could cost more than €12 billion by the end of 2025 (210703)
• “Environmental bonus” also benefits SUVs (201007)
• Number of subsidy applications for electric cars has more than doubled (200811)
• Government doubles subsidies for electric cars (200606)
• Subsidies for electric cars to be increased and extended until 2025 (200207)
• Purchase subsidy for electric cars extended by one year (190609)
• Court of Auditors criticizes waste of taxpayer money on electric car subsidies (180801)
• Continued low interest in purchase subsidy for electric cars (180102)
• Little interest in purchase subsidy for electric cars (170110)
• Electric cars to be exempt from motor vehicle tax until 2020 (160511)
• Federal government grants subsidies for electric cars again (160403)
• Tax exemption for electric cars extended to ten years (121011)
• Electric cars hardly in demand – pure electric cars remain a niche product for the time being (111217)
• Federal government grants electric car lobby one billion euros (110507)

• List of links to electric cars

• Background: Nothing but expenses – purchase subsidies for electric and hybrid vehicles have so far only had a windfall effect (January 2018)
• Background: Electric cars need more range, not more subsidies (April 2016)
• Background: Electric cars between batteries, fuel cells, and hybrid drives (September 2009)