General Instructions

Table of Contents

Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless otherwise noted.

Future Developments

For the latest information about developments related to Form 8910 and its instructions, such as legislation enacted after they were published, go to www.irs.gov/form8910.

What's New

The plug-in conversion credit expired for conversions made after 2011.

Purpose of Form

Use Form 8910 to figure your credit for alternative motor vehicles you placed in service during your tax year. The credit attributable to depreciable property (vehicles used for business or investment purposes) is treated as a general business credit. Any credit not attributable to depreciable property is treated as a personal credit.

Taxpayers that are not partnerships or S corporations, and whose only source of this credit is from those pass-through entities, are not required to complete or file this form. Instead, they can report this credit directly on Form 3800.

Alternative Motor Vehicle

An alternative motor vehicle is a vehicle with at least four wheels that qualifies as a qualified fuel cell vehicle.

Qualified fuel cell vehicle.   This is a new vehicle propelled by power derived from one or more cells that convert chemical energy directly into electricity by combining oxygen with hydrogen fuel, and that meets certain additional requirements.

Certification and other requirements.   Generally, you can rely on the manufacturer's (or, in the case of a foreign manufacturer, its domestic distributor's) certification that a specific make, model, and model year vehicle qualifies for the credit and the amount of the credit for which it qualifies.

  If, however, the IRS publishes an announcement that the certification for any specific make, model, and model year vehicle has been withdrawn, you cannot rely on the certification for such a vehicle purchased after the date of publication of the withdrawal announcement.

  If you purchased a vehicle and its certification was withdrawn on or after the date of purchase, you can rely on such certification even if you had not placed the vehicle in service or claimed the credit by the date the withdrawal announcement was published by the IRS. The IRS will not attempt to collect any understatement of tax liability attributable to reliance on the certification as long as you purchased the vehicle on or before the date the IRS published the withdrawal announcement.

  The following requirements must be met to qualify for the credit:

  • You are the owner of the vehicle. If the vehicle is leased, only the lessor and not the lessee, is entitled to the credit;

  • You placed the vehicle in service during your tax year;

  • The original use of the vehicle began with you;

  • You acquired the vehicle for use or to lease to others, and not for resale; and

  • You use the vehicle primarily in the United States.

Exception.    If you are the seller of an alternative motor vehicle to a tax-exempt organization, governmental unit, or a foreign person or entity, and the use of that vehicle is described in section 50(b)(3) or (4), you can claim the credit, but only if you clearly disclose in writing to the purchaser the amount of the tentative credit allowable for the vehicle (from line 13 of Form 8910).

More information.   For details, see the following.

Basis Reduction

Unless you elect not to claim the credit, you may have to reduce the basis of each vehicle by the sum of the amounts entered on lines 13 and 17 for that vehicle.

Coordination With Other Credits

If a vehicle qualifies for the qualified plug-in electric drive motor vehicle credit on Form 8936, Qualified Plug-In Electric Drive Motor Vehicle Credit, the vehicle does not qualify for the alternative motor vehicle credit.

Recapture of Credit

If the vehicle no longer qualifies for the credit, you may have to recapture part or all of the credit. For details, see section 30B(h)(8).

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