Overview

Transport is responsible for about a quarter of the EU’s total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (EEA, 2024). Fiscal policies affecting vehicles can facilitate the transition to private electric mobility.
The Motor Vehicle Tax (Impuesto sobre Vehículos de Tracción Mecánica, IVTM) is a municipal tax in Spain that vehicle owners must pay for vehicles eligible to circulate on public roads. The amount varies based on the vehicle's power and type, and it is collected by the local municipality where the vehicle is registered. This tax is mandatory and paid annually.
With the support of the LOCAL4GREEN (Interreg MED 2014-20) project, a reduction of the Motor Vehicle Tax by around 50% has been granted by Spanish municipalities to electric car owners, incentivizing private electric mobility.

Evidence of success

In Dolores (ES), based on the average fuel consumption data of combustion engine vehicles, compared with the average consumption of an electric vehicle, and with the projection that 2% of cars will benefit from the incentive, it is estimated that the amount of CO2 emissions avoided is 81 tons per km.

LOCATION

Dolores (ES); Pedreguer (ES); Denia (ES); Burjassot (ES)

TIMESCALE

2018-ongoing

Potential of learning or transfer

The replicability potential of the fiscal incentive is significant in Spain, where all municipalities manage the Motor Vehicle Tax. Unfortunately, it is not so common that the municipalities of other countries manage the Motor Vehicle Tax, therefore this incentive is not easy to transfer transnationally.

Contacts

For the Spanish municipalities:
Yolanda Nicolau: ynicolau@fvmp.org
Francesco Filippi: Francesco.proyectos@musol.org