Drivers with electric vehicles in Alberta will have to pay a $200 annual fee on their vehicles starting next week as the provincial government’s new tax is set to take effect.
Beginning Thursday, February 13, Albertans will be charged the tax when registering their electric vehicles. The province says the $200 tax is comparable to the fuel tax drivers a typical internal combustion engine vehicle would be expected to pay each year.
“Owners of electric vehicles use the same roads as other Albertan drivers. It’s only fair they contribute to public services including those that ensure the continued safety and upkeep of Alberta’s roads,” stated Dale Nally, minister of Service Alberta and red tape reduction.
The tax is collected when the vehicles are registered and when their owners renew their registrations each year. Electric motorcycles, electric off-highway vehicles, such as ATVs, and hybrid vehicles are exempt.
When the EV tax was first introduced in early 2024, the province said it expected revenue from the tax to be estimated at $1 million in 2024-25 and is expected to grow as EV adoption accelerates, reaching $5 million in 2025-26 and $8 million in 2026-27.
Looking to the future, the province added it will continue to review the sustainability of the fuel tax, including the increasing use of alternative fuels, and consider changes to protect tax revenue.
Alberta will join neighbouring Saskatchewan with such a tax, with its road-use charge on electric vehicles in SK that came into effect in October 2021.
With files from Laine Mitchell