Topic F — Frequently Asked Questions About Claiming The Previously-Owned Clean Vehicles Credit

Updated FAQs were released to the public in FS-2023-08PDF, March 31, 2023. 

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) makes several changes to the tax credit provided in § 30D of the Internal Revenue Code (Code) for qualified plug-in electric drive motor vehicles, including adding fuel cell vehicles to the § 30D tax credit. The IRA also added a new credit for previously-owned clean vehicles under § 25E of the Code.

These FAQs provide detail on how the IRA revises the credit available under § 30D (new clean vehicle credit) for individuals and businesses, and information on the credit available under § 25E (previously-owned clean vehicle credit) for individuals, and the new credit for qualified commercial clean vehicles under § 45W of the Code.

Q1. What information does a dealer have to provide to a taxpayer purchasing a previously-owned clean vehicle to allow the taxpayer to claim the previously-owned clean vehicle credit? (added December 29, 2022)

A1. A dealer must provide the following information on a report to the taxpayer and to the IRS:

• Name and taxpayer identification number of the dealer
• Name and taxpayer identification number of the taxpayer
• Vehicle identification number of the vehicle
• Battery capacity of the vehicle
• The date of the sale and the sales price of the vehicle
• Maximum credit allowable for the vehicle being sold
• For sales after December 31, 2023, the amount of any transfer credit applied to purchase
• A declaration under penalties of perjury from the dealer

The dealer must provide the report to the taxpayer not later than the date the vehicle is purchased. For further details on dealer reporting see Topic B, FAQs 7- 9 and Revenue Procedure 2022-42.

Q2. Do I have to report the vehicle identification number on my return to claim the previously owned clean vehicles credit? (updated March 31, 2023)

A2. Yes. The vehicle identification number of the previously owned clean vehicle is required to be included on Form 8936.

Q3. Is the previously-owned clean vehicle credit refundable or able to be carried forward? (added December 29, 2022)

A3. No. The previously-owned clean vehicle credit may only be used by a taxpayer to the extent the taxpayer has a reported tax due. The credit cannot be carried forward and the excess is not refundable.