EV and EV Charger Incentives in Europe: A Complete Guide for Businesses and Individuals

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

SINA BALZHÄUSER
Content Manager

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4 December 2019 (Updated on: 3 August 2020)

This article will sometimes refer to electric vehicles as EVs. Battery electric vehicles will sometimes be referred to as BEVs and plug-in-hybrids - vehicles that combine a gasoline or diesel engine with an electric motor and a large rechargeable battery - will sometimes be referred to as PHEVs.

EU Monetary EV Incentive Map

infographic map of europe showing different ev incentives ev charger incentives wallbox

Belgium

brussels at night with eu institution buildings - belgium - ev charger incentives guide - wallbox

EV Incentives

EV Charging Incentives

Denmark

copenhagen city centre car traffic - denmark - ev charger incentives guide - wallbox

EV Incentives

Tax Benefits

  • Registration tax: Denmark removed the registration tax benefits for EVs (exemption in 2015 to full payment in 2020), which resulted in a decline in EV sales in the country. As of 2020, a new phase-in scheme will begin as follows: 20% of the full tax in 2020, 65% in 2021, 90% in 2022 and 100% in 2023, but only for cars below DKK 400,000 (roughly €54,000) in value.
  • The Danish government also introduced a deduction in registration tax based on battery capacity in April 2017.
  • Ownership Tax: In Denmark, circulation taxes are based on fuel consumption and weight. BEVs pay the minimum amount and plug-in hybrids pay less than an equivalent diesel or gasoline car.

Local Benefits

  • Parking fees: Electric cars are exempt from parking fees up to DKK 5,000 (€670) per year.

Subsidies for Private/Public Sector Purchase of EVs

  • Public procurement: the Danish Energy Agency has funded programs to support municipalities and companies’ purchase of electric cars for fleets since 2013.

EV Charging Incentives

Tax Benefits

  • Denmark currently offers a tax exemption for commercial charging. This means that companies that supply EV charging on a commercial basis can receive an electricity tax rebate of around 1 DKK (€0.13) per kilowatt-hour.

Favorable Tariffs for Buses

  • Favorable tariffs for electric bus charging will last until 2024.

Finland

helsinki night - finland - ev charger incentives guide - wallbox

EV Incentives

EV Charging Incentives

France

paris at night lights - france - ev charger incentives guide - wallbox

France is well-known for its dedication to electrification. Current President Emmanuel Macron recently announced an €8 billion rescue plan for the local auto industry and set a goal of having over 100,000 public charging points next year, producing 1 million EVs annually by 2025 and boosting EV adoption rates in the near future. To achieve these objectives, €1.3 billion in incentives has been set aside, meaning that residents can now save up to €19.000 when buying an EV. Here’s an overview of the main incentives:

EV Incentives

EV Charging Incentives

Germany

berlin brandenburg gate at night with lights and traffic - germany - ev charger incentives guide - wallbox

EV Incentives

EV Charging Incentives

Subsidies for private individuals:

National grants:

  • KfW-Bank: 10-30% incentive for the purchase and installation of a wallbox charger

Local grants:

Subsidies for public charging stations:

  • A subsidy of up to €3,000 for purchasing charging stations of up to 22 kW.
  • A subsidy of up to €12,000 for purchasing DC chargers up to 100 kW.
  • A subsidy of up to €30,000 for purchasing DC chargers above 100 kW.
  • Connections to the grid are subsidized by up to €5,000 for low voltage and €50,000 for medium voltage grid connections.

Tax Benefits

Check our German EV Incentive Guide for a more in-depth overview.

Italy

rome colloseum at night lights - italy - ev charger incentives guide - wallbox

EV Incentives

Subsidies

  • Subsidies of up to €6,000 towards the purchase or lease of a new electrified vehicle in the M1 category (passenger cars for up to 8 people) with a CO2 emission rating of up to 20 g/km for individuals and companies - essentially, only BEVs.
  • Subsidies of up to €3,500 for vehicles that emit between 21 and 60 g/km (plug-in hybrids and some smaller regular hybrids) for individuals and companies.
  • These bonuses can rise to €10,000 and €6,500 (respectively) if you scrap an older vehicle that complies with the Euro 1, 2, 3 or 4 emission standards. 
  • These amounts are deducted from the dealer’s sales price. 

Tax Benefits

  • Ownership Tax: buyers of full-electric or hybrid vehicles enjoy exemption from the annual registration tax for five years after they have purchased their vehicle. After this five‐year period, they benefit from a 75% reduction of the equivalent tax rate for most petrol vehicles.

Eco-Taxes 

  • An ‘eco-tax’: new vehicles purchased and registered in Italy between 1 March 2019 to 31 December 2021, including those leased, will have to pay a penalty for choosing a polluting model.

Local Benefits

  • Some cities in Italy offer incentives, such as free parking in urban areas and free circulation in limited circulation areas (ZTL zones).

EV Charging Incentives

  • Individuals, companies and condominiums can access a new tax deduction of 50% on a total amount of maximum €3,000, spread out into ten equal annual installments, for the purchase and installation costs of EV chargers from 1 March 2019 to 31 December 2021.

Luxembourg

luxembourg airport - ev charger incentives guide - wallbox

Luxembourg maintains its position amongst the top 14 EV markets in Europe, with a 3% market share in 2020. Whilst this EV uptake is at the lower end of the scale, compared to say 48% in Norway, the country is continuing to improve its EV market. The following incentives are enabling the upward trend:

EV Incentives

Subsidies

  • Purchase subsidies of up to €5,000 for zero-emissions vehicles (BEV and FCEV) and €2,500 for PHEVs with CO2 emissions of 50g/kg or less.
  • Up to €500 refund offered for the purchase of an electric quad, motorcycle, light motorcycle (125 cm3) or moped (and pedelec 45). 
  • A subsidy of up to €300 will be offered on the purchase of a new electric bike or pedelec25 (pedal-assisted bike with a power output of no more than 0.25 kW) purchased in 2019.

Tax Benefits

  • Ownership Tax Benefits: Tax reduction on CO2 based vehicle tax.
  • Company Tax Benefits: Expenses related to the use of company cars (calculated on the basis of CO2 emissions) can be deducted from corporate income for those using vehicles with zero or low emissions.

Norway

oslo city traffic - norway - ev charger incentives guide - wallbox

EV Incentives

EV Charging Incentives

Spain

madrid gran via traffic - spain - ev charger incentives guide - wallbox

EV Incentives

Different purchase grants are available via the Moves II and Renove scheme. However, they can’t be combined with each other. For the quickest way to find out what scheme offers the highest grant for private individuals looking to buy a passenger car, use our free & full-resolution decision tree infographic here.

Moves II Grants

  • Grants for the purchase or lease of a battery electric vehicle (BEV), plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) or extended range electric vehicle (EREV):
    • 30-90 km range: €1,900, rising to €2,600 if you scrap your old car 
    • 90 km range or more: €4,000, rising to €5,500 if you scrap your old car
    • 30 km range or more: €4,400, rising to €6,000 if you scrap your old vehicle
    • €8,000
    • €15,000
    • Passenger vehicle (list price up to €45,000):
    • Light goods vehicle (up to 3.5 tonnes): 
    • Bus (up to 5 tonnes) & heavy goods vehicle (3.5-12 tonnes):
    • Coach (up to 5 tonnes) & heavy goods vehicle (over 12 tonnes):
  • Grants for the purchase or lease of a BEV:
    • Up to 350 kg: €600
    • Up to 400 kg: €800
    • €750 
    • Quadricycle: 
    • Motorcycle (70 km range or more; list price up to €10,000): 
  • Grants are also available to companies. You can find a full breakdown of these in our detailed Spain EV Incentive Guide.

Renove Grants

Grants for the purchase or lease of an electric vehicle:

  • Passenger vehicle:
    • Energy classification A: €1,000 (max. list price: €35,000)
    • Energy classification B: €600 (max. list price: €35,000)
    • €500 if the car you scrap is 20 years or older
    • €500 if your household income is below €1.500 per month
    • BEV or EREV: €4,000 (max. list price: €45,000)
    • PHEV (40 km range or more): €2,600 (max. list price: €45,000)
    • PHEV (less than 40 km range) or HEV:
    • Additional benefits:
  • Light goods vehicle:
    • BEV, EREV or PHEV (40 km range or more): €4,000 
    • PHEV (less than 40 km range) & HEVs: €1,200 
    • BEV, EREV or PHEV (40 km range or more): €4,000 
    • PHEV (less than 40 km range) or HEVs: €2,700 
    • €500 if the car you scrap is 20 years or older
    • €500 if your household income is below €1.500 per month
    • Maximum technical permissible mass: less than 2.5 tonnes
    • Maximum technical permissible mass: 2.5 tonnes or more
    • Additional benefits:
  • Motorcycle (BEV; 70 km range or more; 3 kW engine power; max. list price: €10,000): 
    • €750 

Grants are also available to companies. You can find a full breakdown of these in our detailed Spain EV Incentive Guide.

Tax Benefits

  • Registration tax benefits: no registration tax for Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs). 
  • Ownership tax benefits: road tax exemption or reduction depending on local policies. For instance, some city councils (including Madrid, Barcelona, Zaragoza, and Valencia) have chosen to reduce the annual circulation tax (ownership tax) for electric and fuel-efficient vehicles by up to 75%.

Local Benefits

  • Toll exemption on regional highways for electric vehicles.
  • Free parking in selected cities.
  • Traffic lanes reserved for high occupancy circulation can be used by BEVs.
  • Some cities like Madrid and Valencia have additional grants for the purchase of electric scooters, bicycles, mopeds and motorbike. You can find a full breakdown of these in our detailed Spain EV Incentive Guide.

EV Charging Incentives

Sweden

stockholm lights at night - sweden - ev charger incentives guide - wallbox.jpg

EV Incentives

EV Charging Incentives

    Subsidies

    Sweden has introduced its ‘Klimatklivet’ program, which is an investment incentive initiative for local and regional projects that aim to reduce CO2 emissions. Its policies include incentives for EV charging infrastructure, notably:

    • A grant that covers up to 50% of the investment in both public and private charging stations by a range of different types of organizations, companies, municipalities, foundations, and associations, such as housing associations.
    • ‘Klimatklivet’ is exclusively designed for businesses and public associations and its grants are given out 4 times a year. 

    Sweden’s ’Charge at Home’ program is a support scheme for individuals wishing to purchase home chargers:

    • Through this program, individuals can receive up to 50% or SEK 10 000 (€960) for hardware and installation costs of home chargers. 
    • Between 2018 and 2020, this will represent a total of SEK 90 million (€8.7 million) allocated annually to support the installation of home EV chargers.

    The Netherlands

    amsterdam canal - netherlands - ev charger incentives guide - wallbox

    EV Incentives

    EV Charging Incentives

    United Kingdom

    london red phone box traffic at night - UK - ev charger incentives guide - wallbox

    EV Incentives

    EV Charging Incentives

    Conclusion

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