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The zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) standard

A public consultation will be held from May 3 to June 16, 2023.

For information

TO REGISTER VEHICLES
Notice to automakers

You can access the online report This hyperlink will open in a new window. of the Ministère de l'Environnement, de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, de la Faune et des Parcs (MELCCFP) to submit reports concerning:

  • vehicles eligible for credits under the ZEV standard;
  • the detailed statement of sales of eligible vehicles;
  • the summary statement of total sales.

Note that you must have a user name and password to access the MELCCFP online service. They are the same as those used on the platform of the Online GHG Report Submission Feature.

Should you experience difficulties when using the service, contact the MELCCFP by email.

The ZEV standard in a nutshell
Download the explanatory leaflet (PDF, 3 MB)This hyperlink will open in a new window.

Legislation

Objective of the standard

The standard seeks to boost the supply of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) and low-emission vehicles (LEVs), such as plug-in hybrids, to afford Québec consumers access to greater numbers and a broader range of plug-in motor vehicles, which are the cleanest and most technically advanced on the market.

Businesses targeted

Automakers that sell or lease more than 4,500 new vehicles on average per year (all light models) are subject to the ZEV standard. Large volume automakers that sell or lease more than 20,000 new vehicles on average per year are subject to requirements linked specifically to the sale of ZEVs.

Note: Automobile dealerships are not subject to the requirements of the ZEV Act and regulations. The ZEV standard enables automobile dealerships to respond to consumer demand for greater numbers of low-carbon models at increasingly affordable prices. To reach their targets, automakers must ensure that ZEVs are attractive and available where there is demand for them.

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Operation

The ZEV standard came into force on January 11, 2018. The automakers subject to it must accumulate credits by supplying the Québec market with zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) or low-emission vehicles (LEVs). The credit target is calculated by applying a percentage to the total number of light-duty vehicles that each automaker sells in Québec. The credit requirement thus varies from one automaker to another. Each sale or lease of a ZEV recognized by the Minister earns the automaker credits. The number of credits varies depending on the vehicle’s electric range. The greater the range, the greater the number of credits the automaker earns. As a result, this reduces the number of ZEVs that it must sell to meet its credit target. The purpose of the ZEV standard is thus to incentivize the automobile market to develop greater numbers of models that rely on increasingly efficient low-carbon technologies.

Moreover, the credits accumulated in the first compliance period can be used to ensure compliance in the current and future compliance periods. However, it should be noted that the government is empowered to oversee the use of the credits carried over to ensure that it attains its objectives. Accordingly, automakers are entitled to use during the 2019-2021 compliance period the credits accumulated previously in order to satisfy a maximum of 35% of the requirements of this period. For the period 2022-2024 and subsequent years, they can use the accumulated credits to attain up to 25% of the requisite credits.

Small automakers not subjected to the law and the best-performing automakers can also derive financial gain from the sale of their excess credits to other automakers that may choose to purchase them, for example, to avoid paying charges prescribed by the regulation or to keep them to meet their future needs.

Moreover, automakers can use the credits accumulated in the first compliance periods to ensure compliance in the current and future periods. However, it should be noted that the government is empowered to oversee the use of the credits carried over to ensure that it attains its objectives. Accordingly, during the 2019-2021 compliance period, automakers were entitled to use the credits accumulated previously in order to satisfy a maximum of 35% of the requirements of that period. For the 2022-2024 period and subsequent periods, they can use the accumulated credits to attain up to 25% of the requisite credits.

Details on how the ZEV standard operates, including the percentage of credits required by category of automaker, the formulas for calculating credits linked to each type of vehicle, the requirements pertaining to reconditioned vehicles, the rules governing the use of credits and the information requested when vehicles are registered are specified in the legislation.

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Types of vehicles eligible for credits

Light-duty motor vehicles (passenger vehicles), excluding motorcycles and mopeds, that can travel on public roads:

  • fully electric vehicles, including those that run on a hydrogen fuel cell;
  • vehicles equipped with a hydrogen-powered combustion engine;
  • plug-in hybrid electric vehicles;
  • any other vehicle powered exclusively by another means of propulsion that emits no pollutants or that is powered in conjunction with such a means of propulsion.

New vehicles and, under certain conditions, vehicles that are reconditioned by the manufacturer and registered in Québec for the first time are eligible.

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ZEV Act and regulations

The Act to increase the number of zero-emission motor vehicles in Québec in order to reduce greenhouse gas and other pollutant emissions was unanimously adopted by the National Assembly on October 26, 2016.

In 2018, following the example of 10 U.S. states, including California and several northeastern states, Québec assumed the power to adopt what is commonly known as the “ZEV standard,” which encourages automakers to broaden their supply of such vehicles.

In the wake of the adoption of the ZEV Act, two draft regulations were published in the Gazette officielle du Québec on July 5, 2017, and the Cabinet approved the attendant regulations on December 13, 2017. The final regulations were published on December 27, 2017. They came into force, like the ZEV Act, on January 11, 2018.

Both regulations are currently being revised to spur the automotive industry to improve the supply of electric vehicles in Québec. A public consultation on the proposed regulatory amendments is being held from May 3 to June 16, 2023.

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Ministère de l’Environnement, de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, de la Faune et des Parcs
© Gouvernement du Québec, 2023