Audi, Kia, Porsche EVs will lose US tax credit eligibility under new law

Automakers including Audi of America, Kia, and Porsche said that buyers of their electric vehicles would lose access to federal tax credits worth up to $7,500 once President Joe Biden signs the Inflation Reduction Act into law sometime this week.

The bill makes any electric vehicle assembled outside North America ineligible for tax credits and has drawn criticism from domestic and foreign automakers as well as the European Union. The bill does allow credits for customers with binding contracts for vehicles not yet delivered when Biden signs the legislation.

Kia has confirmed it sent a letter to its franchise dealers urging them to reach out to customers on their waiting lists and recommending they enter into contracts before Biden signs the bill.

The letter also stated that the bill means all its EV and plug-in vehicles will no longer qualify for tax credits without written binding contracts in place. The company said the sudden change in EV tax policy was “very disruptive to our business and unfortunately for our customers.”

VW-owned Porsche said on Friday that buyers of its electric Taycan and plug-in hybrid Cayenne and Panamera vehicles would immediately lose eligibility after signing the bill.

The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, representing VW, General Motors, Toyota, and Ford, among others, said last week that the law would make 70% of 72 U.S. electric, plug-in hybrid, and fuel-cell EVs that currently qualify ineligible for tax credits.

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