Germany brings back subsidies for buying electric cars: these are its conditions

In 2016, Germany launched a subsidy to encourage the purchase of electric cars, a programme that ran until 2023, when, due to budget problems, it stopped being offered to buyers. This situation caused electric car sales to fall considerably, by 27%. But now the German government wants to reverse this trend and has launched a new subsidy programme to boost the sustainable market once again.

The programme will be launched in May, with 3,000 million euros and a deadline of 2029, although anyone who has bought an electric car since 1 January 2026 will be able to apply. In this way, everyone who has started this year by buying an electric vehicle will benefit.

Conditions of these electric car subsidies

The subsidies offered will range from 1,500 euros to 6,000 euros, depending on the car chosen, the income level and the number of family members. The programme is designed to benefit low and middle-income families, so these are subsidies aimed at more practical cars rather than luxury ones.

In this regard, in October it was announced that this subsidy programme would only apply to families with an income below 45,000 euros, although this figure has not yet been confirmed. Another important feature of these subsidies is that they will apply to all brands, including those of Chinese origin. According to the government, there are no signs of a massive arrival of cars of this kind, and European brands are strong enough not to feel threatened by them.

In addition to the direct subsidies, the programme includes the exemption of electric cars from taxes until at least 2035, so there will be an additional package of advantages that will make enjoying an electric car in Germany much more attractive. In the previous subsidy programme, 10,000 million euros were distributed and it was a major boost for the market, so this new call is also expected to help stimulate electric car sales.