Exceptional conversion bonus: key points
The COVID-19 crisis has dealt a terrible blow to the French automotive sector, which had already been struggling for several months. To save this part of our economy and the hundreds of thousands of jobs it represents, yesterday we launched a vast support plan to make our automotive industry greener and more competitive!
Which vehicles are eligible for the exceptional conversion bonus?
Almost 50% of models currently on the road are eligible for the exceptional conversion bonus.
What are the amounts of the exceptional conversion premium?
- For private individuals: The amount of the bonus will be €3,000 for combustion vehicles (petrol and diesel) and €5,000 for electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles with arange of over 50 km.
- For companies: For legal entities, the current bonus is doubled for electric and plug-in hybrid light commercial vehicles.
| Conversion bonus | New electric vehicle | Used electric vehicles |
|---|---|---|
|
Corporate (VP) |
2 500 € |
2 500 € |
|
Taxable income > €18,000 per unit |
2 500 € |
2 500 € |
|
Revenu fiscal de référence < à 18 000 € par part |
5 000€ |
5 000€ |
Is retrofitting eligible for the exceptional conversion bonus?
Yes, retrofitting is eligible for the exceptional conversion bonus. The conversion of an internal combustion engine into an electric motor, known as " electric retrofit ", is eligible for the conversion premium in the same way as the purchase of a used electric vehicle.
Would you like to drive a cleaner vehicle? We can help. The ecological bonus and the conversion premium have been increased: pic.twitter.com/TwsJ7z2AYm
- Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) May 26, 2020
Background: what is the conversion bonus?
The "prime à la conversion" is a government subsidy designed to help French people replace an old vehicle with a less-polluting one (pre-1997 gasoline or pre-2001 diesel). To qualify for the conversion bonus, the new vehicle had to be a more recent gasoline or diesel vehicle (new or used), or an electric or rechargeable hybrid vehicle.
What are the amounts?
The amount of the conversion bonus depended on the status of the household: non-taxable or taxable. The amount also increased for heavy drivers (more than 60 km per day, or with a reference tax income of €6,300 or less per unit).
The conversion bonus could therefore reach 5,000 for the most modest households.
| Conversion bonus | New electric vehicle | Used electric vehicles |
|---|---|---|
|
Taxable household |
2 500 € |
2 500 € |
|
Non-taxable household |
2 500 € |
2 500 € |
|
Taxable income ≤ €6,300 per part and non-taxable heavy drivers (+60 km/day) |
5 000€ |
5 000€ |
Good to know: The conversion bonus scale for 2022 is now available.
A subsidy victim of its own success
The conversion bonus has been a huge success in France, but has led to a number of abuses. According to Elisabeth Borne, "a few dozen French people have bought vehicles costing over €50,000" by taking advantage of the scheme, while others have bought "not very recent diesel cars". The objective, which was to move towards less polluting vehicles, therefore enabled the purchase of diesel vehicles among others. In 2019, 48% of applications went to diesel-powered vehicles...
The scheme had already met with great success in 2018, but 2019 has been the year of all records. More than 220,000 applications have been submitted since the beginning of the year, as many as in the whole of 2018. Budget forecasts have been revised upwards, but it's not enough. We had to change the way the conversion premium was allocated.
The 2020 conversion premium in brief
The conversion bonus has therefore been modified for August 2019. The latest decree signed by François de Rugy, Minister of Ecological Transition, provides for tougher conditions for obtaining it and lower amounts granted.
What had changed by August 2019
- The conversion bonus no longer depends on whether you are "taxable" or "non-taxable": its amount will be higher for French people with a reference tax income of less than €13,489 per unit.
- The bonus no longer applies to vehicles costing more than €60,000.
- Vehicles purchased will have to have CO2 emissions of less than 117 grams per kilometer, compared with the current limit of 122 grams.
- Vehicles with a Crit air 2 sticker registered before September 1, 2019 will no longer be eligible for the conversion premium, thus excluding from the scheme all diesels registered before that date.
On the other hand, flex-fuel vehicles running on E85 superethanol will be favored, as their eligibility will take into account a 40% discount on their CO2 emissions.
| Conversion bonus | New electric vehicle | Used electric vehicles |
|---|---|---|
|
Companies |
2 500 € |
2 500 € |
|
Taxable income > €13,489 per unit |
2 500 € |
2 500 € |
|
Revenu fiscal de référence < à 13 489 € par part |
5 000€ |
5 000€ |
Note that this aid can still be combined with the 2023 ecological bonus.
Changes to the vehicle conversion bonus from the beginning of August
After the great success of the plan reserved for the first 200,000 customers as part of the support for the automotive industry and the acceleration of the conversion of the most polluting vehicles, the Government is defining a new conversion bonus scheme applicable from from August 3.
In fact, the exceptional conversion bonus under the stimulus plan was a great success at the end of July, benefiting 200,000 French people. The recovery plan's exceptional conversion bonus scheme will therefore be adapted from August onwards.
A transitional arrangement has been put in place to allow eligible vehicles ordered up to Monday August 3 to benefit from the exceptional scheme, with a 3-month period allowed for invoicing.
From August 3 onwards, the French government will continue to provide a strong incentive for car conversion. To enable as many households as possible to benefit from this measure, all vehicles classified Crit'air 3 or older (i.e. petrol vehicles registered before 2006 and diesel vehicles registered before 2011) will remain eligible for scrappage.
The conversion bonus scale will be the same as before the exceptional support plan, continuing the government's special effort to help low-income households purchase cleaner vehicles.
Please note: this scale is applicable from August 3, 2020 to June 30, 2021 inclusive.
| Passenger cars eligible for purchase (to benefit from the conversion bonus) | Natural person RFR ≤ 6 300 € or RFR > 13 489 € heavy-duty driver | Personne physique RFR < 13 489 € | Individuals RFR > €13,489 | Legal entities |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids with a range > 50 km |
5 000 € |
2 500 € |
2 500 € |
2 500 € |
|
Crit'Air 1 thermal vehicle emitting less than 137 g C02/km |
3 000 € |
1 500 € |
|
|
|
Crit'Air 2 thermal vehicle emitting less than 137 g C02/km and registered for the first time after 01/09/2019 |
3 000€ |
1 500€ |
|
|
What do you think of these changes? Don't hesitate to ask us your questions.
