Government incentives for used electric cars

It is difficult to understand clearly what types of government incentives are available for electric, hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles. We know there are discounts offered by the government for new electric cars, but what about used electric vehicles? What is the exact amount of the grant to which we have access to? Are there certain conditions of admissibility that must be respected? We have created this guide to help you see more clearly, and answer most of your questions.

The ‘Roulez Vert’ program

This Quebec Government initiative called the Roulez Vert Program, encourages buyers, businesses, non-profit organizations and municipalities who want to purchase an electric vehicle or a charging station. Let’s first take a look at the essential conditions that will give you access to government incentives for used electric vehicles:

• The vehicle must be purchased at a dealership based in Quebec;
• It must be registered in Quebec;
• It must never have previously received a grant as part of the Roulez Vert program;
• It must be equipped with a 4 kWh battery, or greater;
• It must be at least 3 or 4 years old according to the model-year compared to the registration in the buyer’s name;
• It must be under an original warranty for a new vehicle that is valid in Quebec;
• It must be inspected in order to evaluate the residual capacity of the battery compared to the initial capacity.

The most important thing to remember from all of these conditions is that if you choose to purchase your electric vehicle directly from the owner, it will not be eligible to a grant, and neither will it be if it has previously already received a discount as part of the Roulez Vert program.

What vehicles are admissible to this program?

On top of having to comply with all of these conditions, you should know that not all electric vehicles are admissible to a grant. Only vehicles from the 2018 and 2019 model-years under a new vehicle warranty that includes applicable warranties on battery life will be admissible.

The amount of the grant for a used electric vehicle

Since July 1st 2022, the grant you will have access to can reach up to $ 3,500 and is applicable to used electric vehicles that have been registered under your name from the 1st of July 2022 on.

How does it work?

You are probably wondering if it is up to you to place a request for a grant with the government or if the dealership will be taking care of it. In fact, you will have the choice between these two options, but no matter which you select, you must imperatively prior register on the government of Quebec website and create a user profile, which you can complete in three easy steps. Once your registration is complete, here is what you must do:

At the dealership

During the transaction and with your authorisation –obviously-, your advisor will fill out the grant application for you and make sure that your online user profile has been completed properly and that you are admissible to the program. He will also confirm with you how much you are admissible to.

You will then have to sign a form that states that you are transferring your rights. This way, your signature will authorize the government to send the discount directly to your Chrysler dealership, who will then directly deduct the amount from the total cost of your vehicle.

If you do it yourself

If your dealership does not offer to deduct the grant amount to the total cost of your car or if you prefer doing it yourself, then you must get on the government website and follow the steps to create a grant request yourself. Once it has been approved, you will be notified by email.

Then all you will have to do is to connect to your online services account from the government website, and in the notifications tab, you will have to enter your social insurance number. You can rest assured that online government services are completely safe; you must enter this number so that the financial aid may be transferred to you. You will then have to wait between 4 to 6 weeks to receive your check by mail.

If, for any reason whatsoever, you cannot complete this request online, then you can also fill it in and send it by mail.