Saskatchewan to Levy Annual $150 Electric Vehicle Tax Starting Oct. 1

It was expected and is now a reality somewhere in the country: the Saskatchewan government will implement a new annual tax on electric vehicles, starting October 1, 2021.

The measure is part of its 2021-2022 budget. Cost? $150 annually, for anything electrically powered and considered a passenger vehicle.

In a press release, the government justified the implementation of the new tax by explaining that electric vehicles do not contribute to road maintenance while gas-engine vehicles do, through the provincial fuel tax.

The province’s Saskatchewan Party government, led by Scott Moe, says that during the 2019-20 fiscal year, fuel tax revenues totaled nearly $454 million. However, road maintenance expenditures totaled nearly $616 million. Obviously, there is a shortfall.

While electric vehicles are gaining popularity in many parts of Canada, sales in Saskatchewan remain low. This is not a surprise, as the only incentive available to Saskatchewan residents is the federal one. We know that in British Columbia and Quebec, the provincial governments also have programs in addition to the federal one.

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