Very long awaited, since initially announced no later than December 31, the decree on the ecological bonus must appear this Tuesday morning, according to our information.
It sets in stone the new thresholds for this boost for motorists who purchase an electric vehicle.
For half of the highest income households, the ecological bonus will fall, from 5,000 euros to 4,000 euros.
However, its amount remains unchanged for half of French people with the lowest incomes, that is to say 7,000 euros for deciles 1 to 5.
The ecological bonus is a victim of its success.
Sales of electric cars are increasing (around 17% of total sales in 2023) and, in turn, so are the allocations of ecological bonuses.
Bercy even had to release, at the end of the year, an additional 400 million euros to be able to complete the budgetary year on schedule, the number of “bonuses” granted having exceeded forecasts by 30%.
A call for fresh air for Chinese cars?
The bonus is also a victim of the success of social leasing, financed with the same budgetary envelope – 1.5 billion euros also including the conversion and retrofit bonus – and which the government has just put an end to in 2024. Because, with 50,000 candidates already accepted, it threatened to undermine public accounts.
Does this reduction in the ecological bonus – recently recalibrated to favor French and European cars – not risk opening up an avenue for Chinese cars, which are more competitive in terms of price?
“Social leasing has come to eat up part of the bonus,” says a senior official from the Ministry of Finance, “but we can’t do everything!
People who have 30,000 or 40,000 euros to buy an electric car are not close to 1,000 euros.
»
Those who, until the decree was published, purchased an electric car, fell through the cracks.
While waiting for the text, it was in fact last year's decree which continued to apply, with a bonus of 5,000 euros for the wealthiest motorists.