Nepal Removes Tax on Electric Vehicles.
Last year, Finance Minister Yubaraj Khatiwada slapped excise duties on electric vehicles 30-80% depending on their capacity and levied customs duty of 60%. He justified it by saying electric SUVs were luxury items, and the government needed to augment revenue to fight the Covid-19 pandemic. The move priced EVs out of the market at a time when sales had just started to pick up, and various brands of electric vehicles were gaining popularity because of their expanded range. But Khatiwada’s move spiked prices of electric vehicles by 120-140%, making them less competitive vis-a-vis fossil-fuel alternatives.
Saturday’s new budget presented by Finance Minister Bishnu Paudel has completely repealed excise duties on EVs imports while cutting customs duties down to the earlier 10%. This takes the tax formula back to 2016 when cuts in excise and customs duty had made battery-operated vehicles gain popularity. The new policies are based on Nepal’s ambitious plan to phase out petrol-diesel vehicles with EVs by 2031.
– Nepali Times
Thank you Minister Bishnu Prasad Poudel for reviving electric vehicles hope in Nepal. You did an amazing job. Cheers!
P.S. Yubraj Khatiwada feeling jealous after Bishnu Poudel made such an appreciative decision? He will be remembered as one of the worst finance ministers of all time by electric vehicle lovers.
ELECTRIC VEHICLES ARE THE FUTURE. ❤
LET’S MAKE NEPAL A HUB FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES.
