Electric Car Rebates In Canada – Save On Your New Electric Car

Looking at getting an electric car? For all their benefits, from being cheaper to run, to producing fewer emissions, they have one major downfall – they are much more expensive to purchase than an equivalent gas car.

But thankfully, our provincial and federal governments are here to help with the cost. The federal government offers a rebate when you purchase an electric car and many provincial governments have their own rebates on top of that.

I personally took advantage of these rebates when buying a Hyundai Ioniq 5 a few months ago. If they hadn’t existed, I likely wouldn’t have bought it. It would have been far too expensive to purchase.

The rebates didn’t bring the cost down to parity with an equivalent gas car, but they made the purchase far more palatable.

So what is available? How much can you save? And how do they work? Here is our guide to electric car rebates in Canada.

Summary of electric car rebates in Canada

Here is a summary of what governments are offering rebates, and the maximum amount you can receive.

A word about these rebates. We live in a democracy, governments change, and there are budgets to consider. Meaning, these could change at any time (as you’ll see in the Ontario and Quebec sections). All rebate amounts are up to date as of May 4, 2022.

For every rebate, we’ll determine if the vehicle I purchased is eligible for any of the rebates. I bought a Hyundai Ioniq 5 Preferred AWD Long Range, which has an MSRP of $54,999, which doesn’t include delivery or taxes and fees.

Federal electric car rebate Canada

• Max rebate amount: $5,000
• How to claim: Done by the dealer
• Charger included: No

First up, the rebate that’s available for anyone in Canada – the federal electric car rebate.

This rebate is available for both new electric cars and plug-in hybrids.

To qualify for the rebate, the base trim level of the car has to be less than a set amount, which varies by the number of seats. This amount doesn’t include any delivery fees, taxes, or extras, so even if the car has a higher price, it can still qualify, as long as it’s part of the same model of car.

If it’s a regular car, the base level trim price must be less than $55,000, with a maximum price of $65,000.

For SUVs, vans, and trucks, the base price must be less than $65,000, with a maximum price of $70,000.

The rebate is $5,000 for an electric car and a plug-in hybrid with an electric range of more than 50 km, and $2,500 if that electric range is less. If you’re leasing the vehicle, you only get the full rebate if you lease for more than 4 years. The rebate reduces for amounts less than this.

Want to see what vehicles qualify? The federal government has its own site that shows exactly what cars qualify, and how much you would get.

In my case, I purchased a Hyundai Ioniq 5. The model I bought costs $54,999 – as an SUV, it doesn’t exceed any price cap. The base level price is only $44,999, so it even qualified under the previous rebate program.

The rebate did play a large part in the vehicle I bought. At the time I purchased my vehicle, the federal rebate was capped for vehicles starting at $45,000. Another vehicle I was looking into was the Ford Mustang Mach-E. However, its base level price is $51,495, which meant it didn’t qualify at the time (this vehicle does now though).

How do you get the rebate? There’s actually nothing you have to do. The dealership will deduct the rebate from the total price of your vehicle (after taxes), and they will receive the rebate from the government.

The full details of the rebate can be read here.

Provincial electric car rebates

So what about the provinces? Many of them have their own rebates.

Here’s what each province in Canada is offering for residents when it comes to electric cars.

This CAA page has a high level overview of what is offered.

With each of these, you’re able to combine what you get from the province with the federal government rebate, if your vehicle qualifies for both. So in Quebec, for instance, you can get up to $13,000 in combined rebates, not including the extra charger rebate.

• Alberta
• British Columbia
• Manitoba
• New Brunswick
• Newfoundland
• Nova Scotia
• Ontario
• PEI
• Quebec
• Saskatchewan

BC electric car rebate

• Max rebate amount: $3,000
• How to claim: Through dealer
• Charger included: No

British Columbia offers their own electric car rebate program.

For a vehicle to qualify, it must have an MSRP of no more than $55,000.

You can get up to $3,000, depending on the vehicle you purchase:

• $3,000 for an electric, longer-range plug-in hybrid, or hydrogen fuel cell, and
• $1,500 for a shorter range plug-in hybrid.

What defines short and long range? Unfortunately, we couldn’t find a definition for it.

My Ioniq 5 is eligible for this rebate, as the MSRP is $1 less than the maximum allowed.

Alberta electric car rebate

• Max rebate amount: None

Alberta is one of 4 provinces in Canada which doesn’t have an electric car rebate of some kind.

Saskatchewan electric car rebate

• Max rebate amount: None

Saskatchewan is another province in Canada with no rebate for electric cars.

Manitoba electric car rebate

• Max rebate amount: None

Like their prairie cousins, Manitoba also doesn’t offer an electric car rebate.

Ontario electric car rebate

• Max rebate amount: None

Ontario is the other province in Canada that doesn’t offer an electric car rebate program.

The province used to offer one (which was quite generous), but it was scrapped in 2018.

However, an election looms in Ontario in 2022 and some parties are promising an EV rebate of some kind if they’re elected.

Quebec electric car rebate

• Max rebate amount: $8,000 until June 30, 2022, $7,000 afterwards
• How to claim: Must register with the government of Quebec first, the rebate then gets applied through the dealer
• Charger included: Rebate of up to $600

Quebec offers the most generous rebate program when it comes to electric cars in Canada. However, the amounts that can be claimed will be changing on June 30, 2022. The eligibility criteria will not. The full details are here.

What do you need to purchase to get a rebate? The MSRP of your vehicle must be less than $60,000 to qualify for the rebate. So, my Hyundai Ioniq 5 is eligible.

How much you can get depends on the vehicle you drive. Here’s the amount you can get rebated, depending on when you go to buy your vehicle.

As to how to claim your rebate? You’ll need to first create an account with the government of Quebec here and then create a profile. Once you do that the car dealer can verify it was created, and will apply the rebate to your vehicle purchase.

Finally, you can also get a rebate of up to $600 towards the cost of supplying and installing a level 2 charger in your home. The full details of how to get it are here.

New Brunswick electric car rebate

• Max rebate amount: $5,000
• How to claim: Through the dealership
• Charger included: Rebate of up to $750

When it comes to electric vehicle rebates in New Brunswick, they largely follow the old federal guidelines.

Meaning, a car with 6 seats needs to have a base level trim price of $45,000, but only up to a maximum MSRP of $55,000 for higher level trims. Any vehicle that costs more won’t be eligible. Lucky for me, a Hyundai Ioniq 5 Preferred AWD long-range model comes in $1 under.

For a vehicle with 7 seats or more, the base trim needs to be less than $55,000, and high trim levels qualify if they have an MSRP of up to $60,000.

You can also get a partial rebate if you purchase a used all electric or plug-in hybrid, which is rare in Canada.

You can get a rebate of up to $5,000. Here are the maximum rebates you can get in New Brunswick, which depend on the type of vehicle you get.

First, here are the rebates for new vehicles:

And now for the used vehicles:

If you lease the vehicle, the amount you’ll get varies with the length of your lease. You’ll need to lease your vehicle for at least 4 years to get the full amount.

Finally, you can also get rebated up to $750 for the cost of supplying and installing a level 2 charger for your home.

Prince Edward Island electric car rebate

• Max rebate amount: $5,000
• How to claim: Through the dealership
• Charger included: Yes, user simply pays the installation cost

This is the provincial rebate your author took advantage of.

The government of PEI offers up to $5,000 towards the purchase of an electric vehicle.

PEI follows the old federal government model for their rebates. If it qualified for the old federal rebate, it will qualify in PEI too (and so does my Hyundai Ioniq 5).

Meaning, a 6 seat vehicle needs to have a base level trim MSRP of $45,000, or $55,000 for a 7+ seat vehicle.

You’ll get $5,000 for an all-electric car, or $2,500 for a plug-in hybrid. These rebates are taken care of by the dealer.

One interesting wrinkle though – you can get these same amounts for a used electric or plug-in hybrid as well, as long as they have a sticker price of less than $55,000.

The province also provides buyers with a level 2 charger for free. It will come by courier within 2 weeks of your purchase. You simply have to pay the installation costs.

For reference, this is the model I was provided, which (with tax) costs around $1,000. I paid $300 to get it installed.

One point I will add – it’s tricky trying to buy a charger, just because there are so many models you can choose from. The government providing one for me was one decision I didn’t have to make.

And if you’re wondering, this charger works well. If you need help picking one out yourself, I recommend taking the province up on its offer, although the initial setup was a pain.

Nova Scotia electric car rebate

• Max rebate amount: $3,000
• How to claim: Through the dealership
• Charger included: No

Nova Scotia follows the criteria set out by the old rebate from the federal government, they just provide smaller amounts.

You’ll receive $3,000 for an all-electric, hydrogen, or longer range plug-in hybrid, and $1,000 for shorter range plug-in hybrid.

You can also receive up to $2,000 for a used vehicle. You can see the full details on what Nova Scotia has to offer here.

Newfoundland electric car rebate

• Max rebate amount: $2,500
• How to claim: Through the dealership
• Charger included: No

We finally arrive at Newfoundland. You can receive up to $2,500 in rebates there. And while that’s lower than other provinces, there’s no minimum MSRP you have to worry about. Just about any electric and plug-in hybrid is eligible except for Tesla cars.

If the vehicle you’re looking at appears between pages 38-43 of this guide, it’s eligible. And yes, our Ioniq 5 is listed. It also covers more expensive vehicles that the federal government rebate doesn’t cover. Say you want an EV truck like the Ford F-150 Lightning, you can get a rebate on it.

You’ll get a rebate of $2,500 for an all-electric car, and $1,500 for a plug-in hybrid.

Here are the full details on Newfoundland’s program.

How to win a free Tesla electric car

There’s a way you can win an electric car – our GeniusCash program.

How? First, apply for a credit card through our offers page. Once you get approved, we’ll give you up to $100, depending on the card.

As part of getting approved, you’ll be entered in to win a draw for $10,000. Or, if we get 5,000 entries, we’ll give away a Tesla Model 3 – a car that doesn’t qualify for most federal rebates in Canada.

Want the full details on our amazing Tesla giveaway? Here’s how to make your entry.

Ready to take advantage of the government rebate?

Government rebates are an easy way to take the bite out of the cost of a new electric or plug-in hybrid car.

And for me, I got a rebate of $10,000, plus a free level 2 charger – another $1,000 in savings.

Do you have any plans to get a new EV in the near future?

Any experience with these rebates of your own?

Let us know in the comments below.

FAQ

What is the federal electric car rebate?

The federal electric car rebate provides up to $5,000 on qualified vehicles. For a car to qualify, it needs to have an MSRP of less than $55,000 for the base trim level. For trucks, SUVs, and vans, it needs to have an MSRP of less than $60,000.

What provinces offer rebates on electric cars in Canada?

The following provinces in Canada offer electric car rebates:

• BC,
• Quebec,
• New Brunswick,
• PEI,
• Nova Scotia, and
• Newfoundland.

Is there a rebate for electric cars in Ontario?

As of April 2022, there is no rebate in place in Ontario for electric car purchases.

How can I win a free electric car?

You can use our GeniusCash program to try and win a Tesla Model 3. Simply apply and get approved for a credit card using our offers page, and you’ll be entered in to win a draw for $10,000. If we get 5,000 entries, we’ll upgrade the prize to a Tesla Model 3.