EV Grant Germany 2026 Worked Through: Method and Sources

Every legal value sits in one parameter file, read on 19 October 2026: the guideline on funding the purchase of new electric vehicles of 19 May 2026, the BAFA pages on eligibility, applying and documents, the Income Tax Act and the Vehicle Tax Act on gesetze-im-internet.de, the 38th BImSchV and the Federal Environment Agency's notices. Calculators and pages read only from that file. We are not BAFA; only its grant decision is binding.

Household income

For each adult in the household, meaning the applicant and, where there is one, a spouse, registered partner or partner in a marriage-like relationship, the calculator takes the taxable income under section 2(5) of the Income Tax Act from the last two tax assessments, averages them and adds up the averages. Example: person 1 with €42,000 and €46,000, person 2 with €18,000 and €22,000 gives €44,000 + €20,000 = €64,000. A joint assessment shows one figure; the calculator splits it across two people, and the total stays the same. Children's income does not count. An assessment of €0 is valid. An average 50 cents over a limit falls into the next band; the calculator does not round.

Bands and children

Bands up to €45,000, up to €60,000 and up to €80,000, each limit inclusive. The income limit is €80,000 and rises by €5,000 per eligible child up to €90,000; more than 2 children do not count. Above €80,000 the third band's amount applies as long as the limit for the number of children is met. A child counts if under 18 on the day of first registration, living in the household and with child benefit (Kindergeld) paid for them. Battery electric cars: €5,000 to €6,000; plug-in hybrids and range extenders with at most 60 g CO2/km or at least 80 km electric range: €3,500 to €4,500.

Periods and deadlines

First registrations from 1 January 2026 are covered, battery electric cars until 31 December 2029, plug-in hybrids until 30 June 2027. You apply after registration and at the latest 12 months afterwards; the calculator shows the month. The holding period is 36 months from registration. Because the calculator only asks for the month and year, it counts from the 1st; check against your exact registration day.

Price after the grant and model data

Price after the grant = manufacturer list price including 19% VAT minus the grant. Dealer discounts, manufacturer bonuses, delivery and registration are not included. 21 list prices come from manufacturer price lists and model pages, each with its address, date read (19 October 2026) and a verbatim quote in the site's source folder; where no manufacturer source could be read, no price is shown. Approvals per model come from BAFA's statistics as of 1 October 2026, with a model's variants added up. Registrations come from the Federal Motor Transport Authority's FZ10 table, January to September 2026, battery electric or plug-in hybrid column, under the Data licence Germany, attribution 2.0. The KBA counts model ranges, not versions; Cupra appears under Seat, the iX1 under the X1 range. A script rebuilds the file from these three sources.

Vehicle tax

Battery electric cars first registered from 18 May 2011 to 31 December 2030 are exempt for 10 years, at the latest until 31 December 2035 (section 3d KraftStG). After that, per started 200 kg of permitted total weight, €11.25 up to 2,000 kg, €12.02 up to 3,000 kg and €12.78 up to 3,500 kg, tiered, and half of that (section 9(1) no. 3 and (2)). Example 2,200 kg: €62.26 a year. Plug-in hybrids: €2.00 per started 100 cc (diesel €9.50) plus tiered amounts per gram of CO2 above 95 g/km.

GHG quota

For a battery electric car without metered consumption, the Federal Environment Agency sets an estimate of 2,000 kWh a year (3,000 kWh for light commercial vehicles), which counts three times towards the quota. What a provider pays for it is a market price; the calculator uses the amount you enter and gives the market level of 14 October 2026 as a guide. We do not convert it into tonnes of CO2.

Tests before every release

All 30 cells of the grant table (battery electric and plug-in hybrid, five bands, zero to two children).
Every limit on both sides: 45,000 and 45,001, 60,000 and 60,001, 80,000 and 80,001, 85,000 and 85,001, 90,000 and 90,001, three or more children.
First and last day of each registration period, deadlines across month ends.
Vehicle tax at every 200 kg step, the end of the exemption before and after 2035, plug-in hybrids with and without a CO2 charge.

What the calculators cannot do

Check that your vehicle qualifies; BAFA publishes no list of eligible models.
Read your tax assessments or decide who belongs to your household; in case of doubt BAFA decides on your documents.
Promise anything: the grant depends on available funds and there is no legal entitlement.
Personal advice on tax, leasing or finance.

Updates

Full review at least every 12 months, plus every new BAFA statistic, every monthly KBA release and every change to the guideline. Report errors to kontakt@stromerpraemie.de. See the editorial policy.

How we calculate