If you entered into a binding contract to purchase the vehicle prior to August 16, you fall under the old rules. The IRS considers it a binding contract if you put at least 5% of the purchase price down as a nonrefundable deposit.
Under these rules, the credit is between $2,500 and $7,500 depending upon battery capacity, and the car must weigh less than 14,000 pounds. The credit is non-refundable, meaning that you can't receive a credit that exceeds your tax liability for the year. (ie. If you are eligible for a $7,500 credit but your tax liability for the year is $6,000, you will only receive a $6,000 credit.) The credit is claimed in the year you actually take possession.
If you are not in a binding contract, or entered into one August 16 or later, you fall under the new rules. In addition to the income limitation and cap on the price of the vehicle, the new rules also require final assembly of the vehicles to be in the U.S. in order to qualify for the credit. (There is also a requirement that the battery be built in the U.S. with minerals mined or recycled in the U.S., but that does not go into effect until future years.) Very few vehicles meet this requirement.
If you aren't sure where final assembly occurred, you can look it up here (though you will need the VIN, which you probably don't have yet):
https://www.nhtsa.gov/vin-decoder
**Say "Thanks" by clicking the thumb icon in a post
**Mark the post that answers your question by clicking on "Mark as Best Answer"
