To encourage more sales, the Canadian government has implemented tax write-offs and purchase incentives to prospective buyers of electric vehicles (EVs) and EV chargers.
The Canadian government remains firm in its goal of decarbonizing the transportation sector by encouraging sales of EVs. They hope that by 2030, 30% of vehicle sales will be electric, and by 2040 all new cars sold in Canada will be EVs or other zero-emission vehicles. In 2019, more than 40,000 EV units were sold – a 22% increase from the previous year.
One major concern of potential EV buyers is the lack of charging infrastructure in the country. To help alleviate that concern, the government is offering incentives such as its Zero-Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program (ZEVIP).
ZEVIP was introduced in 2019 and was included in the national budget. The program is fast-tracking the deployment of ZEV charging stations (level 2 and higher) in localized areas around the country.
Potential applicants for ZEVIP include:
- Workplaces, offices or any other location where employees perform their jobs that are categorized as workplaces. Chargers placed must be primarily used by employees.
- Fleets. Fleet vehicles are those that are owned and/or operated by an individual or organization. Current ZEVIP guidelines only apply to light-duty vehicles.
- Multi-unit residential buildings (MURBs). MURBs must have a minimum of three dwelling units to qualify for the program.
Under the program, NRCan will provide up to 50% of the total project cost, up to a maximum of $5 million per project. Depending on the type of infrastructure, these figures may differ.
Every province and territory in Canada is eligible for at least one EV charger installation subsidy. But many are limited-time applications for the current round of ZEVIP. Businesses, municipalities and fleets that plan to install EV chargers sometime in the next few years are encouraged to act now to take advantage of these limited-time offers.
To learn more about Canada’s EV tax write-offs and purchase incentives, click here.
Photo: ChargeLab’s EVCS