Electric driving is the cheapest way to get from A to B by car, especially when you choose to charge at home. However, the electric car itself is not exactly cheap. When you choose a decent car with a number of nice features and a nice range, the price quickly shoots up. To help you with this, there is a subsidy available. Although it is not (anymore) a goldmine, it is also not difficult to qualify and that makes it particularly interesting. What is the situation with subsidies for electric cars and how do you qualify?
Why was a subsidy for electric cars actually introduced?
Actually, it is quite simple. In order to meet the climate objectives, the Dutch government must reduce the use of fossil fuels. One of the ways chosen for this is to stimulate electric driving, because this reduces CO2 emissions by leaps and bounds. However, the electric car is on average much more expensive than a car with a traditional combustion engine. That is why the government has decided to set up subsidies and tax benefits to make the purchase of the electric car more attractive. Especially in the initial phase, there were great advantages that you could seize.
What is the current situation regarding electric driving and subsidies?
When you are looking for a subsidy for the purchase of an electric car, you are looking for SEPP, or Subsidy Scheme for Electric Passenger Cars for Private Individuals. In 2024, a subsidy pot of no less than 58 million euros has been released, of which € 2,950 is available per application as long as you meet the conditions for subsidy for the electric car. One of the conditions, for example, is that the car must be on the SEPP car list .
Every private individual with a valid residential address in the Netherlands is eligible for SEPP once and the car must be registered in your own name. In addition, the original new price must be between €12,000 and €45,000 and the car must be new and have a range of at least 120 kilometers. As you would expect, most electric cars fall within this scheme and it is relatively easy to comply with it. Car dealers are also happy to help with this (partly because they can sell more cars this way, of course).
Slow reduction of tax benefits (and there is a reason for it)
These advantages are slowly but surely being phased out and there are a number of reasons for this. One of the biggest reasons is that the difference in price between petrol and diesel cars versus electric cars is getting smaller. Also, the pots that were intended for subsidies and tax benefits are being exhausted, while the expenditure (for example for the road network) is actually increasing, partly because of the (heavier) electric cars.
The chances are very high that the electric car will always have more advantages, purely to make and keep the choice for the electric car more attractive. After all, the intention is that cars with combustion engines will disappear completely from the streets.
Keeping electric driving cheap is always sensible
With or without subsidies and tax benefits, there are many ways to make electric driving cheaper. For example, it is always good to opt for home charging, because this is the cheapest way of charging, even when you include the costs of purchasing a charging station and charging cables in the price. Certainly with a good energy contract or when you can use off-peak rates, in order to get the lowest price per kWh.
Do you want to make electric driving cheap and are you looking for a charging station for home? Then definitely take a look at our cheap, high-quality charging stations. Do you want to be sure that you can keep it affordable now and in the future? Then immediately choose a strong charging station with a charging capacity of at least 11 kW (3-phase charging station) or even 22 kW (here you often need a heavier connection). With these charging stations you can easily make do at the moment, but they are also suitable for the electric cars of the future that have heavier battery packs and can handle a higher charging speed.
