Today, France unveiled a list of electric vehicles now eligible for federal tax incentives of up to €7,000. As anticipated, electric vehicles manufactured in China, such as Tesla’s Model 3 and the Dacia Spring, the most affordable EV on the market, did not meet the criteria.
To sway buyers towards French and European models, President Emmanuel Macron introduced new incentives, including a €100 per month leasing scheme for EU-made electric cars. The French government also announced substantial cash incentives for first-time EV buyers, with the condition that the cars are manufactured in the EU.
The green bonus, initially a flat €5,000 cash incentive (€7,000 for lower-income families) for all EVs, has revised its rules. Initially, a third of these incentives were allocated to Chinese-made EVs, but now, the incentives consider the car’s production and life cycle, excluding Chinese and foreign-made cars with significant CO2 emissions in their manufacturing process.
The Chinese-manufactured Dacia Spring, representing 1 in 10 electric cars sold in France, will experience a price increase from €15,800 to €20,800 without the bonus. The MG 4, a British-branded electric sedan owned by China’s SAIC Motor, priced at €30,000 pre-bonus and holding 61.4% of the French market in terms of registrations this year, is also removed from the list.
Tesla’s Model 3, exported from Tesla’s Shanghai factory for Europe, is no longer eligible for tax incentives in France. However, the Model Y, the world’s most popular EV, is included since its assembly takes place in Germany.
Among other notable changes, BYD’s Atto 3 and Dolphin are no longer eligible, while Kia’s Niro (assembled in South Korea) and Hyundai’s Kona (manufactured in the Czech Republic) still qualify for the cash-back bonus.
This move is part of an initiative to encourage French consumers to “buy from Europe,” offering more significant tax incentives on cars from French and European-made automakers. The decision-making process was overseen by the French environmental agency Ademe, with approximately 65% of the EVs sold in France remaining on the list, including 24 models by Stellantis and five from Renault.
France has committed to producing over 1 million EVs by the end of 2027.
