Exemption from motor vehicle tax for registered electric vehicles

You have bought a pure electric vehicle or subsequently converted an internal combustion engine vehicle into a pure electric vehicle? Then you can be exempt from motor vehicle tax for up to 10 years.

To promote electromobility, the Motor Vehicle Tax Act provides for a temporary tax exemption for pure electric vehicles followed by a 50 percent tax reduction.

Battery electric vehicles

As the registered owner of a pure electric car, you are exempt from motor vehicle tax for a limited period starting from the date of first registration.

The following rules will then apply to you: 

• If the electric vehicle is registered for the first time between May 18, 2011, and December 31, 2030, you are exempt from motor vehicle tax for up to 10 years, but for no longer than until December 31, 2035.
• Subsequently, your motor vehicle tax payable will be reduced by 50 percent.
• If ownership of the electric vehicle changes, the tax exemption is transferred to the new owner, provided the exemption period has not yet expired.

Pure electric vehicles within the meaning of the Motor Vehicle Tax Act are considered to be:

• Vehicles powered exclusively by electric motors.
• Vehicles powered entirely or predominantly by mechanical or electrochemical energy storage systems such as batteries.
• Vehicles powered entirely or predominantly by zero-emission energy converters such as hydrogen-powered fuel cells.

Retrofitted electric vehicles

The exemption from the motor vehicle tax also applies to vehicles that have been subsequently retrofitted with a purely electric drive. Provided all the requirements for your retrofitted electric vehicle are met, you will be exempt from the motor vehicle tax for a period of 10 years, but no later than December 31, 2035. The tax benefits for retrofitted vehicles with an electric drive apply from the date of the conversion on which the registration authority determines that the requirement has been met.

The following applies to newly registered all-electric vehicles:

• You do not need to submit an application.
• The determination of whether your vehicle is an eligible pure electric vehicle is made on the basis of the vehicle data transmitted by the registration authority.
• You are exempt from motor vehicle tax from the date of first registration.

The following applies to vehicles that have been retrofitted to run on pure electric power:

• If you want to register your retrofitted vehicle as a pure electric vehicle, this will be reviewed by the competent registration authority.
• The tax benefits apply as of the date of the conversion, when the registration authority determines that the requirements have been met.

If the data provided by the registration authority indicates that the vehicle is an eligible electric vehicle, you will automatically receive a notice from the responsible main customs office regarding the granting of the tax exemption or tax reduction.

• Your electric vehicle must have been first registered between May 18, 2011, and December 31, 2030. 
• If a vehicle is retrofitted to become an electric vehicle, the retrofit must take place between May 18, 2016, and December 31, 2030. 

There are no costs. 

• Objection
• Detailed information on how to file an objection can be found in the tax assessment. An objection can also be filed online via the customs portal. To do this, select the objection category under comprehensive services in the service overview.
• Lawsuit before the finance court: This usually takes place after the appeal proceedings.