What Electric Car Rebates Can You Get Across Australia?

Depending on where you live, an electric car rebate could get you as much as $6,000 off your purchase. Why? The government rebate for electric cars in most states and territories is designed to help increase uptake of energy efficient cars.

Incentives, subsidies, rebates – getting money off or getting it back when you buy a car is a bonus. This bonus is essentially there to help us get into the greener car culture.

Find out more about what you can score in this article.

Electric car rebate benefits

When you consider how cars contribute to global warming, driving a zero or low emission car is a natural solution. But electric cars can be costly.

Government incentives have been designed to reduce or remove certain costs. These include rebates and subsidies to reduce the cost of the car itself. They include other costs like stamp duty and car rego. In some cases, they also include buying and installing electric car chargers.

Fair warning, the government rebates for electric cars across states and territories are time limited. In some cases, certain benefits are now wrapped up while others continue. What’s on offer varies too. So, without further ado, find out what electric car rebates are available to you.

NSW electric vehicle rebate

NSW residents (and businesses) who bought or put down a deposit for their electric car by 31 December 2023 have until 30 June 2024 to cash in on the electric car rebate. Provided your electric vehicle’s retail selling price was less than $68,750, you can get an electric car rebate of $3,000.

As you can see, the government rebate for electric cars in NSW isn’t open ended. Rather it’s intended to whet our appetites, helping us get used to seeing electric cars as a viable purchase option.

Stamp duty too

This NSW government rebate for electric cars extends to stamp duty. You must have bought or made your deposit before the end of 2023 and you must apply for your stamp duty refund by 30 June 2024. This saves you around another $2,500.

How does the QLD EV rebate work?

In QLD, buying an electric vehicle could get you either a $3,000 or $6,000 electric car rebate. Each rebate takes a small chunk out of the total QLD government rebate for electric cars, which stands at $45 million.

$3,000 electric car rebate

The electric car rebate is for those buying a electric vehicle valued up to $68,000 (including GST) after 21 April 2023. Those who bought an electric car valued up to $58,000 between 16 March 2022 and 20 April 20 2023 (including GST) are also eligible.

QLD businesses can get this electric car rebate too. Find out more about eligibility criteria here.

$6,000 electric car rebate

Now, if you’re eyeing that sweet $6,000 rebate, here’s the deal…

Either snag a new electric vehicle worth up to $68,000 (including GST) on or after 21 April 2023. Your total household taxable income must be $180,000 or less per year. With the same household income, you’re also eligible if you bought an electric vehicle valued up to $58,000 (including GST) between 16 March 2022 and 20 April 2023.

Choose a zero emission vehicle

One added criteria for the QLD government rebate for electric cars is that your purchase must be a zero emission vehicle (or ZEV).

How many EV rebates left in WA?

Residents of WA have been afforded a total tally of 10,000 eligible vehicles for their government rebate. Each rebate is worth $3,500, which goes directly into your chosen bank account once your application is successfully processed.

At the time of writing 3,986 electric car rebates have been made to the tune of $13,951,000 all told. That leaves just over 6,000 rebates remaining.

The WA government rebate for electric cars was provisioned for either 10,000 cars or three years, whichever comes first. The three year mark will be reached by Saturday 10 May 2025 – so if you’re thinking of becoming an electric car owner, now’s the time.

No hybrids

The WA government rebate for electric cars doesn’t include hybrid vehicles; only zero emission vehicles make the cut. That’s because the answer to “Are hybrid cars green enough?” is, well, not quite as green as zero emission vehicles.

That said, unless you’re charging with renewable energy such as solar, you could still be burning coal through electricity consumption. Learn how to choose the best electric car for you.

The SA subsidy

In SA, only electric vehicles that were registered after 28 October 2021 have been eligible for a subsidy. The subsidy ended as of 1 January 2024. That said, if you’d already entered into binding electric vehicle purchase contract prior to that date, but you’ve yet to register your vehicle, you’re still able to apply.

And if you’re wondering if there’s a pricing parameter for the subsidy, that’s a yes. The SA subsidy applies to new battery electric or hydrogen fuel cell vehicles valued up to $68,750 (inclusive of GST).

Registration exemption for electric vehicles

But wait there’s more. The SA government has provided an added bonus of a three year registration year exemption – and this isn’t coming to an end. If you’re in the market to buy a new battery electric or hydrogen fuel cell vehicle read some key electric car questions to ask your dealer.

What are the EV incentives in Victoria Australia?

Although the $3,000 Victorian government rebate for electric cars ended 30 June 2023, there are some other incentives still in play.

Electric vehicle registration costs are discounted at an annual rate of $100. They’re also afforded a flat rate of $8.40 per $200 of market value (regardless of how much your car costs) on duty rates instead of paying luxury rates.

Find out more about different types of electric vehicles.

What is the electric car rebate in Tasmania?

Tasmania’s Climate Change Action Plan 2023-25 has budgeted for 375 rebates of $2,000 each at a total of $750,000. Interestingly, rebates are offered for “new battery electric vehicles and second-hand electric vehicles” provided they’re newly registered.

Not only does that sound like a green option it also sounds super efficient.

The Tasmanian government rebate for electric cars will be concluded once the budget has been depleted. If you’re weighing up electric cars vs petrol for your imminent purchase, now may be the time to switch.

Find out more about applying for the Tasmanian electric car rebate, here.

What are the EV incentives in the NT?

While there’s no government rebate for the purchase of electric cars in NT, there are other incentives. Namely, you can get free stamp duty to the tune of up to $1,500 on electric vehicles valued up to $50,000. There’s also a $91 saving on annual registration.

Interestingly, there’s another incentive in the mix that’s pretty unique…

Grants scheme for electric vehicle charger installation

The NT has committed a total of $300,000 towards incentivising the installation of electric vehicle charging stations. In total 100 grants have been allocated for individuals to buy and install charging stations along with 80 grants for businesses. Each grant is valued at $2,500.

On this last note – it’s worth considering how your electricity is being made. Much of Australia’s electricity is coal generated; coal being a non-renewable and a pollutant. Essentially, you want to generate your electricity using renewables, otherwise your ‘green car’ is still creating emissions. Just not from the tail end but at the power station instead!

Find out more about the electric car incentives in NT, here.

ACT incentives for low and zero emissions vehicles

The ACT is offering free and discounted vehicle registrations for electric vehicles and hybrids. In fact, even low emission petrol and diesel cars will be getting more favourable car registration prices from 1 July 2024.

Essentially, ACT will be changing from a weight based to an emissions based way of calculating vehicle registration costs.

Anyone buying a new or used ZEV from 24 May 2021 to 30 June 2024 can get two years of vehicle registration costs waived. Hybrid cars (plug-in electric and electric) are eligible for 20% off the first 12 months of registration fees if the car was first registered before 30 June 2024. However, these hybrid cars can’t produce more than 130g of emissions p/km.

Stamp duty

Another boon for ACT residents opting for green cars is exemption from stamp duty. All this bids well given the ACT territory’s plan to ban petrol and diesel cars by 2035.

This includes zero-emission vehicles, motorcycles and hybrids (plug-in electric and electric) bought anytime from 1 August 2022. It includes used zero emission cars too. Used hybrids purchased from 1 July 2023 also get a spot.

ACT residents can also get zero interest loans from $2,000 to $15,000 to make the switch to electric vehicles. Nice! Find out more about the ACT electric vehicle incentives here.

What else, besides electric car rebates?

Besides getting an electric car rebate, there’s a great deal else to know about switching to low and zero emission vehicles. Overall, while they may be more costly to purchase the savings on fuel are enormous and they tend not to need repairs nearly as often as petrol cars.

Find out more about these cars by reading more of our blog articles:

• 5 must knows for buying electric cars in Australia
• Electric cars – expectations vs reality
• Latest, greatest and safest electric cars
• The most fuel efficient cars in Australia
• Insuring a Tesla (how is it different?)

On that last note, car insurance may not be a subsidy or a rebate, but it certainly can save your bank when you need to pay for vehicle repairs or replacement.

Car insurance ranges in levels of cover. With different types of car insurance, you get to choose what suits your car and your budget and take it from there. Get a quote today (just click below) and once you buy your plan, you can get behind the wheel with added peace of mind.