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Grants remain available for the purchase of electric cars and cargo bikes!

Grants
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The grant for the purchase of zero-emission vehicles, which was opened in February, remains open and the Environmental Investment Centre (EIC) invites all interested parties to apply for the grant. The grant will remain open until the budget has been exhausted, but at the moment grant money remains available.

Maris Salin, project coordinator at the EIC, who deals with grants for the purchase of zero-emission vehicles, says that if the idea has crept silently towards purchasing an electric car or a cargo bike, then perhaps the holiday season will be calmer and more suitable for dealing with it. ‘At the moment, grant money is still available, and the choice to purchase a vehicle can be made prudently and calmly.’

Salin continues, noting that messages have unfortunately reached the EIC, indicating that the grant money is about to be exhausted and the purchase must be made quickly. ‘It is possible that this is the fault of the grant from a few years ago, in which the money was distributed in minutes, and this legend continues to live on. The difference is that this time we have a much larger budget and we are providing the grant after the vehicle has been purchased, rather than booking it in advance,’ she explains. ‘Before making a purchase, it is also worth confirming on the EIC website that the given vehicle qualifies for the grant. Unfortunately, we have received requests that we cannot satisfy because the terms and conditions have not been read directly from the source, with advice from someone else having been trusted instead. If there is any doubt or there are clarifying questions, it is always worth contacting the EIC first,’ said Salin, encouraging applicants to communicate with the EIC.
As at 3 July 2023, the EIC has supported the purchase of 140 electric cars, of which 67 have gone to private persons and 73 to companies. A total of 80 cargo bikes have been purchased with the help of the grant – private individuals have purchased 38 bikes and companies have bought 42. The companies that have received a grant and who have purchased a car can be viewed here on the EIC website, and companies that have purchased a cargo bike can be found here. 

The EIC will continue to distribute the grant until the budget is exhausted. As at the beginning of July, the balance of the grant budget for purchasing zero-emission cars for private individuals is EUR 3,295,000 and for companies EUR 3,351,000. The balance of the grant budget for the purchasing of cargo bicycles by private individuals is EUR 321,754 and for companies EUR 325,527. When reflecting the state of the budget, both the data of projects that have already received a grant and those under evaluation have been taken into account. Applications can be submitted via the e-grants environment. A detailed view of the current state of the budget is available on the EIC website. The EIC shall review the application for a maximum of 70 days and this shall be done in the order in which they are received. 

Main Terms and Conditions

  • We support the purchase of new all-electric M1 and N1 category cars (passenger cars and light vans) and cargo bikes with an additional electric powertrain. Vehicles can also be equipped with a hydrogen fuel cell. Cars can also be purchased using leasing.
  • The grant amount for each vehicle is EUR 4000. The grant for a cargo bike is 50% of the purchase price, but not more than EUR 1000. 
  • The price of a passenger car eligible for the grant can be up to EUR 60,000 and the price of a light van up to EUR 80 000, excluding VAT. There is no price limit for hydrogen cars.
  • Applicants may be legal persons registered in Estonia and natural persons with an Estonian personal identification code. Car dealers and state and local government agencies cannot apply for grants for cars. Legal persons in public law and constitutional institutions governed by public law, as well as agencies administered by the authorities of a rural municipality or city, can also apply for a grant for cars. The restriction does not apply to cargo bikes.
  • The grant for a new vehicle may be applied for within two months after the purchase and receipt of the vehicle and, in the case of a car, after the initial registration of the car in the register of the Estonian Transport Administration. Purchase, registration and possession of the vehicle must not have taken place before the entry into force of the regulation on the measure (6 February 2023).
  • The electric vehicle must be in use for at least four years, move around mainly in Estonia, and use renewable energy to charge the car.
  • The cargo bike must be a bicycle with an additional electric power unit within the meaning of the Road Traffic Act and the engine power must not exceed 250W. A cargo bike must have a box or stand built by the manufacturer as part of the bicycle frame, designed to transport at least 40 kg of items or people; the cargo bike is no wider than 900 mm and is equipped with an odometer.
  • We will support the purchase of a maximum of 15 cars and 15 cargo bikes per entrepreneur-applicant (together with associated entrepreneurs). A natural person can apply for a grant for the purchase of one car and one electric cargo bike.
  • In order to receive the grant, the car must be purchased from a car dealer approved by the Estonian Transport Administration or the Estonian Vehicle Dealers and Services Association (AMTEL), or from a vehicle manufacturer within a country that is part of the European Economic Area or Switzerland, its official representative, or a dealer recognised by the manufacturer or its official representative. A cargo bike must be purchased from an entrepreneur engaged in the sale of bicycles.
  • The application must be accompanied by the purchase documents of the vehicle.
  • All terms and conditions can be found here on the EIC website.

The grant is provided using the proceeds from the trading scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowances, with the grant measure having been developed by the EIC in cooperation with the Ministry of the Environment.