Eco-Bonus: What's Changing for You on December 15
On December 15, the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) will publish a list of vehicles that are now eligible for the eco-bonus.
For new electric cars, it will be contingent on achieving a minimum environmental score. This score will be calculated, in particular, by taking into account the environmental impact of the vehicle’s manufacturing process.
For the record, the eco-bonus is a government subsidy intended for individuals and businesses for the purchase or lease of a new or used electric and/or hydrogen-powered vehicle (in the latter case, for individuals only). For a new car, the eco-bonus cannot be granted if the purchase price exceeds €47,000. For the lowest-income households, the bonus can be up to €7,000 for a car and €8,000 for a pickup truck. The amount is determined based on the vehicle’s price, the applicant’s status (individual or business), and, in the case of an individual, their reference taxable income per share.
Until now, when it came to environmental impact, only the greenhouse gas emissions caused by the vehicle on the road were taken into account.
To qualify under the new rules, automakers had to submit a detailed application to the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) for each car model and version—since a single model may, for example, have different types of batteries. ADEME then assigns an environmental score to each car, taking into account, in particular: the materials used (steel, aluminum, ferrous metals, etc.) in the vehicle’s manufacture; CO₂ emissions associated with the energy used for intermediate processing and vehicle assembly; CO₂ emissions associated with battery production; the transportation of the car, examining the various modes of transport used (ship, train, truck, etc.) from the assembly site to the distribution site in France.
The decree specifies that, where applicable, the presence of recycled and bio-based materials in the vehicle, as well as the battery’s reparability, will be taken into account when calculating the environmental score.
It should be noted that December will mark the end of the 2023 bicycle subsidy, which allowed low-income households to receive €150 toward the purchase of a new bicycle, or €300 to €400 for an electric bicycle depending on income, and even €1,000 to €2,000 for a cargo bike.
