Advertisement
Electric vehicles (EVs) are massively subsidised in Australia.
First, more than $550 million of tax revenue is estimated to be lost annually due to the Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) exemption for battery EVs and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs); however, the FBT exemptions for PHEVs ended on 1 April 2025.
Under the FBT exemption policy, somebody who leases a $60,000 car would save nearly $12,000 a year if they purchased an EV instead of a petrol car through a novated lease.
The full text of this article is available to MacroBusiness subscribers
Cancel at any time through our billing provider, Stripe
About the author
Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness.
Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.