The deadline for the end of the used clean vehicle credit is less than a week away.
Under the provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed into law by President Donald Trump July 4, the clean vehicle credit for used and new vehicles will not be offered for vehicles acquired after Sept. 30, 2025.
In its guidance issued in August, the IRS defined acquired as the “date a written binding contract is entered into and a payment has been made.” The payment can be a down payment or trade-in. As long as the vehicle is acquired through a written binding contract by Sept. 30, it will be eligible for the credit if it is put into service after that date.
The IRS stated that the time of sale report from the dealer at the time they take possession or within three days of taking possession of the vehicle.
The IRS will close the Clean Vehicle Credit portal for new user registration on Sept. 30. The portal will remain open after that date for “limited usage” for previously registered users to submit time of sales reports and updates.
To qualify for the used clean vehicle credit, the vehicle must be $25,000, older than two model years, weigh less than 14,000 pounds and have a 7-kilowatt battery. The purchaser must also meet several requirements. Consumers must fall in certain income thresholds ($150,000 or less for joint filers, $112,500 or less for head of household, and $75,000 or less for other filers).
Between April and July, BlackBook reported wholesale prices for plug-in hybrids, hybrids, battery electric vehicles rising slightly. Prices for all three remain well below their peak in 2022.
In the CARFAX Used Car Index for September, hybrids and EVs fell slightly from the previous month, 0.1 percent, to $31,840.
“Even as the electric vehicle (EV) and hybrid federal tax credit is winding down, the prices of used Hybrids and EVs on Carfax were relatively flat in September, falling less than $50,” CARFAX reported.
