Transport Minister Chris Bishop said the update to the Clean Vehicle Standard aims to ease pressure on importers at a time when families are already struggling with rising costs.
He said many New Zealanders rely on affordable vehicles, whether they are purchasing a first car, upgrading for a growing family, or buying a vehicle for a small business.
Bishop said the Clean Vehicle Standard, introduced in early 2023 to encourage lower emissions, is no longer aligned with the realities of the car market. He said there is a shortage of cleaner used vehicles and declining demand for new electric vehicles, leaving most importers unable to meet their emissions targets.
He said eighty six percent of importers are currently facing net charges rather than receiving credits, and some hybrid vehicles are now attracting charges under the scheme.
Bishop said without intervention, those costs were likely to be passed directly to buyers through higher vehicle prices and reduced choice.
The Government’s changes include a temporary reduction of charges by nearly eighty percent from 2026 to 2027. The top rate for new vehicles will drop from sixty seven dollars fifty per gram of CO2 to fifteen dollars, and the top rate for used vehicles will fall from thirty three dollars seventy five to seven dollars fifty.
No credits will expire before 31 December 2028, and a full review of the Standard is under way, with recommendations due to Cabinet by June 2026.
Bishop said the reduced charges mean some of the country’s most popular imports will face significantly lower fees, preventing thousands of dollars in potential extra costs for buyers.
The Government estimates the changes will avoid two hundred and sixty four million dollars in net charges that could otherwise have been added to vehicle prices.
Bishop said the Clean Vehicle Standard is not working in its current form, and the temporary adjustments will protect consumers while a full review takes place.
The amendment will be made through an update to the Land Transport Clean Vehicle Standard Amendment Bill number two, which has been reported back from the Select Committee. The Government expects it to pass this week and take effect on 1 January 2026.
Broadcaster Chris Lynch is an award winning journalist who also produces Christchurch news and video content for domestic and international companies. This article was originally published by Chris Lynch Media and is published here with kind permission.
Bishop said the Clean Vehicle Standard, introduced in early 2023 to encourage lower emissions, is no longer aligned with the realities of the car market. He said there is a shortage of cleaner used vehicles and declining demand for new electric vehicles, leaving most importers unable to meet their emissions targets.
He said eighty six percent of importers are currently facing net charges rather than receiving credits, and some hybrid vehicles are now attracting charges under the scheme.
Bishop said without intervention, those costs were likely to be passed directly to buyers through higher vehicle prices and reduced choice.
The Government’s changes include a temporary reduction of charges by nearly eighty percent from 2026 to 2027. The top rate for new vehicles will drop from sixty seven dollars fifty per gram of CO2 to fifteen dollars, and the top rate for used vehicles will fall from thirty three dollars seventy five to seven dollars fifty.
No credits will expire before 31 December 2028, and a full review of the Standard is under way, with recommendations due to Cabinet by June 2026.
Bishop said the reduced charges mean some of the country’s most popular imports will face significantly lower fees, preventing thousands of dollars in potential extra costs for buyers.
The Government estimates the changes will avoid two hundred and sixty four million dollars in net charges that could otherwise have been added to vehicle prices.
Bishop said the Clean Vehicle Standard is not working in its current form, and the temporary adjustments will protect consumers while a full review takes place.
The amendment will be made through an update to the Land Transport Clean Vehicle Standard Amendment Bill number two, which has been reported back from the Select Committee. The Government expects it to pass this week and take effect on 1 January 2026.
Broadcaster Chris Lynch is an award winning journalist who also produces Christchurch news and video content for domestic and international companies. This article was originally published by Chris Lynch Media and is published here with kind permission.
2 comments:
All a fiasco. Could not even get the name correct. Clean Car Standard is wrong as CO2 is not "unclean". Confused with nitrous oxides and other poisonous emissions, negligible from modern i.c.e. Now that the idealist dreamers have sampled evs and realised how incredibly impractical they are except for commuting, and how difficult they are to dispose of, and with the cessation of the absurd subsidy, demand has collapsed. In a more or less free market democratic society and a culture which places much store on status and freedom, trying to enforce low whole of life low world CO2 vehicles and low usage is near impossible. A Ford Ranger does wonders for the macho kiwi ego. We are forever told our fleet is too old. But if low total world CO2 production is the aim we should be encouraging lightweight smaller vehicles as 60 years ago and prolonged use with very delayed replacement. The aged modest weight 2 million km Toyota recently in the news by not being replaced would have saved a huge weight of world CO2.
Decarbonisation costs money. Here's one example of how difficult it is to get people to pay (and remain the Government). The 'incentives' and disincentives imposed under the last Govt were badly designed and aimed (it rankles with me that the well-off were subsidised into Teslas by the less well off). Now, with this move, we will get policy paralysis because the two main parties will play games with this issue, failing to allow the emergence of a well-designed price incentive to reduce overall CO2. At the very least, we should be encouraging small cars, widening the gap between their price and the big monsters. We have a 'safety' regime (how many of five stars) promoted by the Govt which strongly encourages big cars, because survival stats are better in them simply because of their mass. The risk is very low for small cars but there is almost fear instilled in people wanting a small cheaper car, implicitly less heavy on CO2.
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