what is a qualified electric vehicle 
the term qualified electric vehicle refers to a plug in electric passenger vehicle or light truck that allows the owner to claim a nonrefundable tax credit after purchase these vehicles must have at least four wheels be designed for use in the public and were not used for commercial purposes the vehicle must be powered primarily by an electric motor that draws its charge from rechargeable batteries or fuel cells the vehicle must be driven almost exclusively in the u s 12understanding qualified electric vehiclesas noted above a qualified electric vehicle is any passenger vehicle or light truck that is designed to be driven by consumers as such these vehicles are not intended for commercial use they must run on batteries or fuel cells that can be recharged using plug in technology consumers with these vehicles are able to claim a nonrefundable tax credit to offset the purchase price 1this credit can be found via section 30d of the internal revenue code irc the section originated from the energy improvement and extension act of 2008 and was later modified for vehicles acquired after dec 31 2009 by the american recovery and reinvestment act aara 34additional amendments were made for specific two or three wheeled vehicles acquired between dec 31 2011 and jan 1 2014 by the american taxpayer relief act atra 5to receive the credit the vehicles must be acquired for use or lease and the credit isn t available for resale the original use of the vehicle must begin with the taxpayer predominantly in the u s 6 there are three parts that must be filled out on form 8936 to get the credit part i calculates the tentative credit amount while the remaining two parts allocate the credit between an individual s business in part ii and personal use of the vehicle in part iii 7president joe biden signed the 1 2 trillion infrastructure investment and jobs act on nov 15 2021 the bill makes investments in a series of areas including the electric vehicle market a total of 7 5 billion is set aside to build a network of charging stations across highways and communities in rural disadvantaged and hard to reach areas this investment also aims to tackle climate change and create jobs in the american manufacturing sector 8special considerationsthe amount of the full credit is 7 500 individuals can receive 2 500 for vehicles acquired after dec 31 2009 a vehicle owner can receive an extra 417 if it is powered by a battery that provides as much as five kilowatt hours of capacity the owner can get an additional 417 for every kwh of battery life above the initial five kwh threshold 6the internal revenue service irs phases out the credit though according to the agency this takes place for a car company s vehicles over the one year period starting with the second calendar quarter after the calendar quarter in which at least 200 000 qualifying vehicles manufactured by that manufacturer have been sold for use in the united states 6a consumer may be eligible for 50 of the credit if they acquire their vehicle from a car manufacturer within the first two quarters of the phase out period and 25 of the credit if it s purchased within the third or fourth quarters of that period any vehicles purchased from a car company once the phase out period is complete 9you can find a complete list of makes models and credit amounts on the irs website keep in mind though that the phase out period for tesla vehicles is already initiated 1effect of the inflation reduction act of 2022the inflation reduction act of 2022 public law 117 169 amended the qualified plug in electric drive motor vehicle credit irc 30d which is now known as the clean vehicle credit it adds a new requirement for final assembly in north america that takes effect on aug 16 2022 additional provisions will go into effect on jan 1 2023 further guidance on these provisions is forthcoming you can get more information about this credit from the internal revenue service 10