Canadians have already claimed $122 million in EVAP rebates

Canada’s new Electric Vehicle Affordability Program (EVAP) is already seeing strong uptake, with newly released funding figures showing more than $100 million in rebates has been claimed within the first three months of the program.

When EVAP launched earlier this year, the federal government allocated $2.275 billion in funding to support zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) adoption through 2031. As of May 15, 2026, $2.153 billion remained available, meaning approximately $122 million had already been used.

Eligible vehicle purchases under EVAP began on February 16, 2026, giving Canadians access to rebates of up to $5,000 for eligible battery electric vehicles and $2,500 for qualifying plug-in hybrids.

Based on the amount of funding already claimed, the figures show at least 24,400 rebates have been issued so far. However, because some vehicles qualify for the lower $2,500 incentive, the actual number of rebates is likely higher and could already exceed 30,000.

Using the conservative estimate of 24,400 rebates over roughly 89 days, Canadians have claimed an average of about 274 rebates per day since the program began, or more than 8,000 per month.

Based on the current rate of claims since eligible purchases began on February 16, EVAP funding would likely last until around late 2030, slightly short of the government’s original 2031 target. While the spending pace is not dramatically ahead of schedule, the early figures still point to strong consumer demand following the return of federal EV incentives.

However, future demand will likely fluctuate depending on vehicle pricing, fuel costs, interest rates, and the availability of popular models.

The strong start is supported by what Canadian ZEV sales data has already shown – federal incentives continue to play a major role in driving EV adoption across the country.

Even though rebates were only available for part of February, Canadian ZEV sales surged almost immediately as buyers returned to the market after the previous iZEV program was paused in early 2025. That momentum carried into March, when ZEV sales increased 75% year-over-year.

The only Tesla vehicle currently contributing to the surge in rebates is the Model Y Rear-Wheel Drive (RWD) imported from Giga Berlin. While the new $39K Model 3 Premium RWD is priced well below the rebate threshold, it is imported from Giga Shanghai and is therefore ineligible for the incentive because Canada does not have a free-trade agreement with China, one of the requirements under the program.