There is also the opposite case. Let's use an example where a vehicle is purchased by an individual (not a business), delivered, taken possession of, and placed in service on 12/30/2022. The title application is submitted to the local DMV, but it may not be processed for a few weeks.
IRC Section 30D (see https://www.irs.gov/businesses/plug-in-electric-vehicle-credit-irc-30-and-irc-30d, the full text of 30D, and various notices) defines acquisition as "For purposes of the 30D credit, a vehicle is not considered acquired prior to the time when title to the vehicle passes to the taxpayer under state law.". It uses the "acquisition" term. Section 30D, however, does not seem to mention anything related to "acquision" when discussing Dec 31 2022/Jan 1 2023 and the term is only used in some specific instances. At the same time, the same guidance also uses terms "purchased", "delivered", "take possession", "place in service", or even "sold" when referring to various milestones, for example "Vehicles Purchased and Delivered between August 16, 2022 and December 31, 2022" or "If you purchase and take possession of a qualifying electric vehicle after August 16, 2022 and before January 1, 2023".
On the other hand, the Inflation Reduction Act text specifies "Except as provided in paragraphs (2), (3), (4), and (5), the amendments made by this section shall apply to vehicles placed in service after December 31, 2022.", using the "placed in service" term. Here we ignore the exceptions such as Final Assembly requirement for simplicity, we can assume this example meets the NA Final Assembly criteria.
So would the vehicle in question, purchased, delivered, and placed in service on 12/30/2022 be eligible for tax credit in tax year 2022, under the pre-IRA rules or does the acquisition date play a role?
