What will the fate be for the Electric Vehicle Availability Standard?
On September 5, the Prime Minister announced Canada would pause the Electric Vehicle Availability Standard (EVAS), also known as the zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate, for the 2026 model year.
That year would have been the first in which automakers were required to ensure 20 per cent of sales were ZEVs. The term is a bit misleading, since it also includes plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), which run on both electricity and gasoline.
Prime Minister Mark Carney also launched a 60-day review of EVAS alongside the pause. Members of Global Automakers of Canada, which I represent, welcomed the decision. It was the outcome we had spent the last six months lobbying for — especially after both the federal government and British Columbia cancelled their incentive programs earlier this year.
It’s not hard to see what happens when incentives disappear. At the end of May, Statistics Canada reported ZEV sales were down almost 33 per cent year-over-year. ZEVs made up just 7.9 per cent of all vehicle sales in May, far short of the 20 per cent target for next year with no way to bridge the gap.
Some have called for a complete repeal of the standard — something no automaker would object to. Still, federal and provincial governments decided years ago to pivot Canada’s auto sector toward electrification.
Countless trade missions and roughly $50 billion in government support attracted a similar level of foreign investment. Global Automakers of Canada members Volkswagen and Honda have accounted for about $22 billion of that.
Honda’s $15 billion investment across four facilities is now postponed until EV market conditions improve, while Volkswagen and PowerCo’s $7 billion project is moving ahead in St. Thomas, Ontario, where some battery capacity will support VW’s Scout lineup.
If a ZEV mandate is to support these investments, it needs to be grounded in consumer demand — not arbitrary government targets.
From the consumer’s perspective, interest in ZEVs has slowed. One reason is cost: vehicles became more expensive once incentives were removed. While some ministers have suggested the iZEV rebate could return in the next budget, given current fiscal pressures it would be risky to count on it.
Other barriers are charging infrastructure and convenience. The most reliable and affordable way to charge is at home, but that’s not possible for many. In 2024, more than 77 per cent of housing starts were in multi-unit residential buildings (MURBs), where installing a Level 2 charger can be difficult or impossible.
The federal government is also behind on its goal of building 40,000 charging stations per year, adding to the perception that charging infrastructure is insufficient. For long trips, consumers face further confusion with Level 3 “fast chargers.” Charging times can range from 20 minutes to over an hour, depending on the station. Costs at many fast chargers are also high enough to erode savings compared to an internal combustion vehicle.
There is no turning back the tide toward electrification, but the transition will be slower than politicians — and many environmental advocates — anticipated. The belief that if consumers simply tried an EV they would automatically switch was overly optimistic.
The very name “Electric Vehicle Availability Standard” reflects a false premise: that manufacturers weren’t willing to sell EVs. In fact, EVs are now available in virtually every segment, as we said would happen, driven by increasingly stringent greenhouse gas regulations that were already moving the industry toward electrification.
This “double regulation” — ZEV and GHG — adds little value in a modern regulatory environment, especially when Quebec and B.C. have layered on their own, different mandates. If Canada is to have a ZEV mandate, a single national standard should be a core outcome of the federal consultation and review.
