Electric Vehicle Affordability Program (EVAP)
Compared with the 242 other application forms we have read
- The heaviest thing to produce is registration and legal paperwork. 14 ask for that.
- Scored mainly on who you are, not what you propose. 29 lead with that.
- What does not disqualify you: No $50,000 cap on Canadian-made EVs. 119 record an exemption like this.
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Eligibility & Details
What this program funds and who can apply
Program Description
Point-of-sale incentive of up to $5,000 for battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), or up to $2,500 for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), at 2026 levels — the levels step down over the program to 2031. Replaces the former iZEV program effective February 16, 2026. Applied automatically as a discount at participating dealerships — no separate application required. The program does not use an MSRP cap: eligibility turns on the vehicle's final transaction value being $50,000 or less, and that cap is waived for Canadian-made vehicles. Available to both individuals and businesses. Note: this is a consumer vehicle rebate delivered through dealerships at point of sale, not a direct business development grant — businesses benefit as vehicle purchasers (e.g. fleet buyers), not as grant recipients, and there is no application to submit.
Eligibility Requirements
- Individuals, Canadian organizations and businesses purchasing or leasing eligible new zero-emission vehicles
- Vehicle's final transaction value must be $50,000 or less (no cap for Canadian-made vehicles) — the program does not use an MSRP cap
- Vehicle must be light-duty (under 8,500 pounds)
- Vehicle must be made in Canada or in a country that has a free-trade agreement with Canada
- Vehicle must meet all of Canada's Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, be highway-capable (no low-speed vehicles) and have at least 4 functioning wheels
- Vehicle must be new and not previously registered — except demonstrator vehicles, which qualify with an odometer reading under 10,000 km
- Must purchase or lease from a participating dealer
- Businesses under common ownership (unless the common ownership arises from being publicly traded) count as ONE organization against the 10-incentive cap — a founder with several corporations has one shared allowance of 10
- Provincial, territorial and municipal governments can receive up to 10 EVAP incentives over the 5-year program
- Approved carsharing companies (Canadian-registered, own business number, membership/subscription model with 24/7 self-service fleet access, publicly open enrolment) can receive up to 50 EVAP incentives per calendar year — recognition via [email protected]
Quick Assessment
Funding Details
- Amount
- Up to $5,000 per BEV/FCEV; up to $2,500 per PHEV (2026 levels; declining to $2,000 / $1,000 by 2030-2031). Lease incentives are prorated by lease length — a 48-month lease earns the full amount, 36 months 75%, 24 months 50%, 12 months 25%.
- Type
- Grant
- Level
- Federal
- Co-Funding
- Up to 100% of eligible costs
- Deadline
- Ongoing (February 16, 2026 to March 31, 2031) — applied automatically at point of sale. As of July 1, 2026, $2.08B of the $2.275B budget remains available.
Program Scorecard
Competition, effort, and approval at a glance
Moderate — standard application process
Low competition — good odds of approval
Simple — quick application
How to Win
Insider tips, common pitfalls, and what successful applicants look like
Insider TipApplied automatically as a point-of-sale discount at participating dealers — no application form needed.
Success Profile
Evaluation Criteria
How Transport Canada judges your application
What the reviewer scores, what gets applications rejected, and what to write.
Distilled from 6+ source documents on tc.canada.ca, condensed into one brief. Sources as of 2026-09-04.
6 of the sources
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What Transport Canada favours
Complete, signed, legible bill of sale or lease◦
“The bill of sale or lease agreement must be complete, signed by both parties and easy to read.”
The form
Consumer Consent Form
- 1authorization blockshort answer
- 2individual branchshort answer
- 3business or organization branchshort answer
- 4Personal Information — consent and authorized usescheckbox
- 5Consent to be Contacted — survey opt-outcheckbox
- 6signaturesshort answer
Attestation Form
- 7Purchaser / Lessee Information (Recipient)short answer
- 8declarations if receiving the incentive as an individualcheckboxes
- 9declarations if receiving the incentive as a business or organizationcheckboxes
- 10repayment undertaking and registration attestationshort answer
- 11signaturesshort answer
Carsharing recognition
- 12Carsharing company — application to be recognised by Transport Canadashort answer
Transport Canada states no length limits for these answers.
Judged against
- 1
Has this business used up its 10 incentives?
Show them Give the dealership a count of EVAP incentives already taken by the business and by every company it shares ownership with.◦
- 2
Does the paperwork match the bill of sale exactly?
What to show them in Premium
- 3
Will the vehicle be registered in Canada in time?
What to show them in Premium
- 4
What happens if a claim is incomplete?
What to show, and the funder’s 2 criteria behind it in Premium
4 questions the reviewer answers about you, in Premium.
Where applicants fail
“If you apply the incentive before an eligibility assessment (pre-approval) is submitted and approved, you do so at your own risk and Transport Canada may not reimburse your dealership.”
“Modified forms or handwritten forms will not be accepted”
Premium · the rest of this brief
See all 18 rules that can reject you and every criterion you are judged on. Then we draft your application for you.
14 more rules that can reject you · 2 more criteria · 12 more prompts
Do you pass?
Each one can rule you out. Tick the ones you meet.
Your organisation
Government limit: 10 incentives
Provincial, territorial and municipal governments can receive up to 10 EVAP incentives over the 5-year program
The project
Transaction on or after Feb 16, 2026
Be bought or leased on or after February 16, 2026 (transactions before February 16, 2026 do not qualify for an incentive, regardless of the delivery date)
Final transaction value $50,000 or less
Have a final transaction value of $50,000 or less, unless it’s made in Canada, then there’s no cap
Meets Canada's Motor Vehicle Safety Standards
Meet all of Canada’s Motor Vehicle Safety Standards
1 thing this funder says you do NOT need, in Premium.
Documents to attach
Ticks are kept on this device.
The money
Maximum incentiveUp to $5,000 BEV, $2,500 PHEV
battery electric vehicles and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are eligible for up to $5,000; plug-in hybrid electric vehicles are eligible for up to $2,500
Year-by-year amounts$5,000 to $2,000 by 2031
Battery-electric and fuel cell electric vehicles: 2026 $5,000 · 2027 $4,000 · 2028 $3,000 · 2029 $3,000 · 2030 $2,000 · 2031 $2,000. Plug-in hybrid vehicles: 2026 $2,500 · 2027 $2,000 · 2028 $1,500 · 2029 $1,500 · 2030 $1,000 · 2031 $1,000.
Lease proration formulaIncentive ÷ 48 × lease months
(full incentive amount of the electric vehicle ÷ 48) x (number of months of the lease)
When it appliesApplied at the dealership
the incentive will be applied directly to your bill of sale or lease agreement. The dealership or authorized seller will apply taxes and fees first, then apply the incentive.
StackingStacks on top of provincial/territorial incentives
The incentive will be applied to eligible transactions on top of any provincial/territorial incentive program.
Costs before approvalPurchases on or after February 16, 2026
Electric vehicle purchase or lease transactions made on, or after, February 16, 2026, may qualify for an incentive.
FeesFree; no extra dealership fees
No, the program is free and dealerships can’t charge extra fees for vehicles bought under the program.
What it pays for · 2
- the purchase or lease of a new eligible battery-electric, fuel cell electric or plug-in hybrid light-duty vehicle, bought or leased on or after February 16, 2026
- leases of 12 months or more, prorated by term
From application to money
- Dealer files pre-approvalPre-approval before vehicle delivery
- Automatic pre-approval2 business daysAutomatic approval, flagged cases in 2 days
- Sign at deliverySign attestation after incentive applied
- Dealer uploads documents90 daysClaim within 90 days of confirmation
- Dealer reimbursed20 business daysReimbursement within 20 business days
In the funder’s words · 5
- Dealer files pre-approval
- The eligibility assessment must be submitted and approved before the vehicle is delivered and before the incentive is applied.
- Automatic pre-approval
- Eligibility assessment is automatic unless flagged 'Pending verification', which is manually reviewed within 2 business days.
- Sign at delivery
- The dealership applies the incentive to your agreement after taxes and fees, then you sign the Attestation Form.
- Dealer uploads documents
- The pre-approval is valid for 90 days. The incentive amount will be reserved until the claim is submitted, as long as it happens within 90 days of the confirmation email.
- Dealer reimbursed
- Reimbursement to the dealership is made within 20 business days of approval.
Quoted lines are word for word from the source documents; lines marked ◦ are our reading of them.
Everything you need to win EVAP
Not a marketing summary. The actual checklist, intel, and stack strategy reviewers look for.
- 4-document checklist with what each reviewer is actually checking
- Your Application Game Plan — the print-ready PDF the preview below describes
- 6-step application timeline with prep hours per step
- Insider tip from program officers on what separates winners
- 4-program stacking strategy to combine with compatible funding
- Success profile + evaluation criteria — exactly what reviewers score on
Application Playbook
Step-by-step process, required documents, and expenses
Application Steps
Required Documents 4
Eligible Expenses 5
Ineligible Expenses 6
Intake Periods
Deadline Notes
Ineligible Organizations
Funding Stack Strategy
Compatible programs, clawback risk, and combined funding potential
Compatible Programs
Clawback Risk
Low RiskHow EVAP Compares
Side-by-side with similar programs
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Related Programs
Other programs you might be eligible for
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the questions founders most often ask about EVAP