The Irish Times reports that the grant's price cap is set to fall from €60,000 to €50,000 from 31 July 2026, and that a new €8,500 scrappage scheme for 13+ year old petrol and diesel cars will pilot from July. Neither change is officially confirmed yet — full details in our EV scrappage scheme guide. Everything below reflects the rules in force today.
The electric car grant in Ireland is €3,500, paid towards new battery electric vehicles (BEVs) with a full price between €15,000 and €60,000. You don't apply for it — your dealer does, and the grant comes straight off the agreed price. On top of that, Revenue gives VRT relief of up to €5,000 for BEVs registered before 31 December 2026. Combined, that's up to €8,500 off a new electric car. The grant is administered by SEAI on behalf of Zero Emission Vehicles Ireland (ZEVI); amounts verified against seai.ie and revenue.ie on 3 June 2026.
EV Grant Amounts by Vehicle Type
| Vehicle category | Private buyer | Commercial |
|---|---|---|
| Passenger car (M1) | €3,500 | N/A |
| Demo passenger car | €2,700 | — |
| Small van (N1S) | €3,800 | €3,800 |
| Large panel van, 3.5t (N1L) | €7,600 | €7,600 |
| Electric moped (L1e-B) | €500 | €500 |
| Electric motorcycle (L3e) | €1,000 | €1,000 |
Source: SEAI electric vehicle grant values, verified 3 June 2026. Demo vehicles are dealer demonstration cars being sold for the first time. Large panel vans have a higher price cap (€90,000) than cars and small vans.
The Rules That Decide Whether Your Car Qualifies
- New vehicles only. No grant exists for second-hand EVs — not even nearly-new imports.
- Battery electric only. The €2,500 grant for plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) has been removed. Hybrids of any kind no longer qualify.
- Price between €15,000 and €60,000. The "full price" includes optional extras, metallic paint, delivery charges and any car-mounted chargers — but is measured before the grant and VRT relief are subtracted. A car that lists at €59,000 but reaches €61,000 with extras gets nothing.
- Private registration must hold for 6 months. If the car is transferred to another registration category (for example, to a company) within 6 months of the grant offer, the grant is rescinded.
How the Grant Is Paid (You Don't Apply)
Unlike SEAI's home energy grants, there's no application portal and no paperwork for you:
- Choose a new BEV from a dealer registered with the SEAI EV grant scheme (nearly all main dealers are).
- The dealer applies for the grant as part of the sale.
- The €3,500 is deducted from the agreed price before you pay. The price on your invoice is already net of the grant.
SEAI's own advice is worth repeating: contact several dealers, because the grant is identical everywhere but the price you're quoted is not.
VRT Relief: Up to €5,000 More, Until 31 December 2026
Separately from the SEAI grant, Revenue applies Vehicle Registration Tax relief to battery electric vehicles registered before 31 December 2026 (per revenue.ie, verified 3 June 2026):
| Open Market Selling Price (OMSP) | VRT relief |
|---|---|
| Up to €40,000 | Up to €5,000 — in practice, VRT is usually fully wiped out |
| €40,000 – €50,000 | Reduced relief on a sliding scale |
| Over €50,000 | No relief |
The relief is applied automatically at registration — no form, no application. Revenue's own worked examples: a BEV with an OMSP of €40,000 generates €2,800 of VRT at 7%, which the relief covers entirely. VRT payable: €0.
The combined picture for a typical family EV (€35,000–€40,000): €3,500 SEAI grant + VRT fully relieved = the car effectively costs €3,500 less than its net price, and you skip a tax that petrol and diesel buyers pay. Electric motorcycles are exempt from VRT entirely until 31 December 2026.
What You Pay After You Buy
- Motor tax: €120/year — the lowest band, regardless of the EV's value or power.
- Benefit-in-Kind relief for company-car BEV drivers continues to taper until the end of 2027 (Revenue rules).
- Charging at home is where the running-cost gap really opens up — and if your roof has solar panels, daytime charging can come from electricity you generated yourself. See our guide to what solar costs in 2026 and how export payments work when the car isn't plugged in.
Higher Grants for Taxi and Hackney Drivers (eSPSV)
If you drive a small public service vehicle, the National Transport Authority (not SEAI) runs a separate, much larger grant scheme — open since 25 February 2026, closing 11 December 2026 or when funding runs out:
- Up to €25,000 for a wheelchair-accessible electric SPSV
- Up to €17,500 for a new electric SPSV where an older, high-polluting vehicle is scrapped
- Up to €7,500 for a new battery electric SPSV (standard)
Details and application forms are on the National Transport Authority website. These amounts were verified against citizensinformation.ie (page edited 23 February 2026).
Don't Forget the Home Charger Grant (€300)
The vehicle grant and the charger grant are two separate schemes. The SEAI Home Charger Grant pays up to €300 towards a smart home charger, you don't need to own an EV yet to claim it, and it works for second-hand EVs too (which the vehicle grant doesn't). Full details: EV charger grant guide.
A 4 kWp solar system generates roughly 3,200 kWh a year — enough to cover 15,000+ km of EV driving. Solar Quotes Ireland matches you with SEAI-registered installers in your county. The €1,800 solar grant and 0% VAT both still apply in 2026.
Get free solar quotes →Frequently Asked Questions
The electric car grant is €3,500 for privately bought new battery electric cars with a full price between €15,000 and €60,000 (verified against seai.ie, 3 June 2026). Electric small vans get €3,800, large panel vans €7,600, electric motorcycles €1,000, and mopeds €500. The grant is administered by SEAI on behalf of Zero Emission Vehicles Ireland, and your dealer applies for it — the amount is deducted from the price you pay.
Yes. Battery electric vehicles registered before 31 December 2026 get VRT relief of up to €5,000, applied automatically by Revenue at registration. Cars with an Open Market Selling Price up to €40,000 get the full relief (which usually wipes out the VRT bill entirely); relief reduces on a sliding scale between €40,000 and €50,000, and disappears above €50,000.
No. The SEAI vehicle grant applies to new battery electric vehicles only — there is no grant for used EVs, including imports. Second-hand EV buyers still benefit from €120/year motor tax, lower running costs, and can claim the €300 SEAI home charger grant, which is not tied to owning a new vehicle.
No. The €2,500 grant for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) has been removed. Only fully battery electric vehicles (BEVs) — cars powered exclusively by a battery with no petrol or diesel engine — qualify for the €3,500 grant.
You don't apply — your car dealer does. When you buy a qualifying new electric car from a dealer registered with the SEAI EV grant scheme, the dealer submits the grant application and deducts the €3,500 from the agreed price before you pay. There is no application portal, form, or paperwork for the buyer. The same applies to the VRT relief, which Revenue applies automatically at registration.
The most common reasons: the full price (including extras, paint and delivery) went over €60,000; the car is a hybrid rather than a fully battery electric vehicle; the car was bought second-hand; or the vehicle was moved out of private registration within 6 months of the grant offer, which rescinds the grant. Cars priced under €15,000 also fall outside the eligible band.
Published: 3 June 2026. Author: Neil Russell. Grant amounts verified against seai.ie electric vehicle grant values, VRT relief against revenue.ie (published 24 December 2025), and eSPSV/scheme context against citizensinformation.ie (page edited 23 February 2026) — all fetched 3 June 2026. Note: SEAI's price floor (€15,000) is used here as SEAI administers the grant; some third-party sources still list the previous €14,000 floor.