Quebec’s EV Rebate Program to Be Halted For Months, May Not Return

by The Car Guide December 17, 2024

Quebec has exhausted funds to support its “Roulez vert” incentive program following a surge in electric vehicle purchases over the past few months. The program will be suspended starting February 1, 2025.

EV incentives in Quebec are by far the most generous in all of Canada, but the provincial government announced this year plans to phase out the program. The maximum of $7,000 for fully electric vehicles will drop to $4,000 on January 1, 2025 and then to $2,000 a year later before coming to an end in 2027.

Many people shopping for an EV or considering an EV have rushed to dealers this fall in order to benefit from the maximum incentive, which has depleted the program. Since July, 34.6 percent of all new vehicles sold in Quebec have been EVs or plug-in hybrids.

Additionally, the $600 incentive toward the purchase and installation of a level-2 charger at home is also coming to a temporary stop on February 1.

According to our sources, the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development hopes to resume the program in April after the 2025 Budget is announced. However, that is no sure thing. Minister Benoit Charette acknowledged recently that EV incentives weigh heavily.

And yet Quebec is moving forward with its goal of banning sales of new vehicles with an internal combustion engine—including hybrids and plug-in hybrids—beginning on January 1, 2034 with MY2035 vehicles.

By December 31, 2025, sales of new ICE-powered vehicles from MY2034 and earlier will also be banned. Further evaluations will be conducted in 2026 and 2030 to assess how the market is evolving.

Quebec aims to have at least 2 million EVs on the roads of the province by 2030 and 4.1 million by 2035.

A so-called gas tax on new vehicles has been ruled out. Rather, the government wants automakers to adapt to the EV sales mandates, Charette said.

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