Federal Council sets out steps for financing transport infrastructure
Peter von Burg
With the increasing spread of electric cars and other vehicles with alternative drive systems, revenues from mineral oil taxes are falling. The Federal Council is therefore planning to introduce a replacement tax for vehicles with alternative drive systems. At its meeting on June 29, 2022, the Federal Council set the benchmarks.
Today, road infrastructure is partly financed by the mineral oil tax and the mineral oil tax surcharge. In order to achieve the climate target of no more greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, the vehicle fleet will have to consist mainly of electric vehicles in the future. The Federal Council has instructed DETEC and FDF to draw up a legislative package by the end of 2023 for the sustainable financing of transport infrastructure through the introduction of a replacement tax for vehicles with alternative drive systems, such as electric vehicles.
The replacement tax will consist of a fixed amount per kilometer driven and vehicle category. Gasoline and diesel vehicles are not affected by the replacement tax and will not be subject to an additional charge. The Federal Council still leaves open how the levy is to be collected.
The Federal Council assumes that the replacement tax will come into force by 2030. The revenue generated from this will be distributed analogously to the revenue from mineral oil taxes.
The media release and other documents are available here.
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