Does Illinois Still Have an Electric Car Tax Credit?

Illinois does not offer an electric car tax credit, but it does offer something that works out better for most buyers: a direct cash rebate of up to $4,000 from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency when you purchase an all-electric vehicle. The money comes as a check rather than a reduction on your state income tax return, and the current application cycle runs from October 28, 2025, through May 31, 2026.¹

How Much the Rebate Pays

The amount depends on your household income and the type of vehicle:

Low-income applicants: $4,000 for a new or used all-electric vehicle that is not a motorcycle.
Standard applicants: $2,000 for a new or used all-electric vehicle that is not a motorcycle.
Electric motorcycles: $1,500, regardless of income.

New and used vehicles pay the same amount within each tier. The vehicle’s base purchase price can’t exceed $80,000, calculated without taxes, registration, documentary fees, or itemized aftermarket add-ons. The rebate also can’t exceed what you actually paid, so a $1,800 used EV caps the rebate at $1,800.¹

These figures drop on July 1, 2028. At that point, standard applicants fall to $1,500, low-income applicants to $3,000, and motorcycles to $750.²

Who Qualifies

You must be an Illinois resident when you buy the vehicle and when the rebate is issued. If you move out of state between applying and receiving the check, you lose eligibility. You also have to be the titled owner and register the vehicle in Illinois.²

Leased and rented vehicles don’t qualify. If a dealer holds the title and you make lease payments, the rebate isn’t available. Vehicles bought from out-of-state dealerships or delivered to you outside Illinois are also excluded.¹

Low-Income Priority

Within each cycle, the IEPA processes all qualified low-income applications first in the order received. Only after those are handled does the agency work through standard applicants. A low-income applicant who mails their packet on day 15 of a cycle gets reviewed before a standard applicant who mailed theirs on day one.³ The IEPA application instructions explain how to determine whether your household income qualifies.

The 12-Month Retention Rule

You have to keep the vehicle for at least 12 consecutive months from the purchase date. During that year, you must remain an Illinois resident and keep the vehicle registered in the state. Selling the car, moving out of state, or letting the registration lapse within that period means you have to pay back all or part of the rebate, and you have 60 days to notify the IEPA when any of those changes happen.² An unexpected job relocation is where this trips people up.

Which Vehicles Count

Only fully electric vehicles qualify. Plug-in hybrids with a gasoline engine do not, even popular models that buyers often assume are covered. The vehicle must be road-legal on all public roadways, including interstate highways, which rules out off-road vehicles, mopeds, and low-speed vehicles. Both new and used all-electric cars count as long as they meet the $80,000 cap and come from a dealership licensed by the Illinois Secretary of State. Private-party sales don’t qualify.²

How and When to Apply

You have 180 days from your purchase date to submit the application, and you have to apply during an open rebate cycle. Applications postmarked before the cycle opens get rejected outright. If you buy an EV near the end of a cycle, you may need to wait for the next one, but the 180-day clock keeps running.¹

The packet includes four pieces:

The completed IEPA rebate application form, downloaded from the agency’s website, with your income status certified and vehicle eligibility confirmed.
A bill of sale or purchase invoice showing the final price, transaction date, and 17-character VIN.
Proof of Illinois residency, such as a valid driver’s license or recent utility bills matching your application address.
IRS Form W-9, which the IEPA uses to report the rebate payment.⁴

Any mismatch between your purchase documents and the application, whether in names, addresses, or VINs, can get the application rejected.⁵

The IEPA accepts applications only by mail. No email, no fax, no hand delivery. Send the complete packet to:

Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
Electric Vehicle Rebate Program MC #40
P.O. Box 19276
Springfield, Illinois 62794-9276

Use certified mail or a trackable shipping service. Your place in the queue is set by the date the IEPA receives your packet, so proof of delivery matters if there’s a dispute.⁵

What Happens After You Apply

The program runs on annual appropriations from the General Assembly. The IEPA has $14 million budgeted for the current fiscal year, and once that money is spent, no more rebates are issued until the next cycle brings fresh funding. You can track the remaining balance on the IEPA’s online dashboard.¹

Once your application is approved, the IEPA sends the payment request to the Illinois Comptroller’s Office, which mails the check to the address on your application. Processing times run several months depending on volume. The state’s involvement ends when the check arrives, as long as you meet the 12-month retention rule.

The Federal EV Tax Credit No Longer Exists

If you were planning to combine the Illinois rebate with a federal clean vehicle tax credit, that option is gone. Public Law 119-21 repealed both the Section 30D new clean vehicle credit and the Section 25E previously owned clean vehicle credit for any vehicle acquired after September 30, 2025.⁶ The only way to still claim either credit is if you had a binding written contract and made a payment on or before that date. For most Illinois buyers in 2026, the state rebate is the only purchase incentive available.

Home Charger Credit and the EV Surcharge

One federal incentive still available is the Section 30C alternative fuel vehicle refueling property credit for home chargers. It equals 30% of the cost of the charger and installation, up to $1,000 per charging port. The charger has to be placed in service at your main home by June 30, 2026, after which the credit expires.⁷ There’s a location requirement: your home has to sit in either a low-income census tract or a non-urban census tract. The Department of Energy’s Refueling Infrastructure Tax Credit Mapping Tool lets you check your address. Professional installation of a Level 2 home charger typically runs $400 to $2,500 in labor alone, so the credit can cover a real share of the cost.⁸

On the other side of the ledger, Illinois charges EV owners an extra $100 per year on top of standard registration fees to offset the fuel-tax revenue that gas vehicles contribute to road funding.⁹ Build that recurring cost into your math when you compare the rebate against long-term ownership.

1
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency. Electric Vehicle Rebate Program
2
Justia Law. Illinois Code 415 ILCS 120 – Electric Vehicle Rebate Act
3
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Administrative Code 35-275.240 – Rebate Priorities and Rebate Amounts
4
Internal Revenue Service. Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification
5
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency. Electric Vehicle Rebate Program Application Form and Instructions
6
Internal Revenue Service. Clean Vehicle Tax Credits
7
Internal Revenue Service. Alternative Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit
8
Internal Revenue Service. FAQs for Modification of Sections 25C, 25D, 25E, 30C, 30D, 45L, 45W, and 179D Under Public Law 119-21
9
Alternative Fuels Data Center. Electricity Laws and Incentives in Illinois