What electric cars pay in motor vehicle tax in St. Gallen, how the tax is calculated and what is changing.
Since 1 January 2026, electric cars in St. Gallen are no longer exempt: all passenger cars are taxed on gross weight and power. EVs in energy label category A get a 50% bonus for the first four years (category B: 25%), after which they pay the same as a combustion car of the same weight and power. Because many EVs are heavier and more powerful, they can end up paying more than a combustion car, and the cantonal parliament has called for corrections.
Since 1 Jan 2026, gross weight and power (technology-neutral): simple tax of CHF 182 per 1,000 kg gross weight (registration document field 33) plus CHF 1.27 per kW of power (field 76), at 1 Jan 2026 prices. The cantonal motor vehicle tax rate (90 to 110% of the simple tax, set annually by the cantonal parliament) is then applied, plus a bonus/malus by energy efficiency category: a malus of +12.5% for category F and +25% for category G, for vehicles without a label and for cars first registered before 1 Oct 2002, with no time limit.
The former special arrangement for electric vehicles was abolished on 1 January 2026 by the 9th amendment to the Road Traffic Charges Act (passed by the cantonal parliament in its winter 2024 session). Since then, EVs are taxed like all passenger cars, on weight and power. If a car is in the best energy efficiency category (A) at first registration, the simple tax is reduced by 50% in the year of first registration and the following three years, or by 25% for category B. For vehicles first registered in another canton or abroad, the bonus applies for the rest of that period. After that there is no reduction. Because power is taxed and EVs are often heavier, an EV can pay more than a comparable combustion car.
No separate rule: plug-in hybrids are taxed on weight and power and only receive the bonus if they are in energy efficiency category A or B, at the same rates and for the same period as EVs.
On 10 June 2026, according to media reports, the cantonal parliament approved two motions: one calls for technology neutrality to be applied consistently and for disincentives against EVs to be corrected within the current system, the other seeks to scrap the power component. For the 2027 budget year, the government is proposing a cut in the motor vehicle tax rate to offset the extra costs vehicle owners faced in 2026 (press release, September 2026). As of early October 2026, no specific change to the law or ordinance affecting EVs had been adopted.
The cantonal parliament's decisions of 10 June 2026 on the two motions are documented only in media reports (linth24, stgallen24, nau.ch). The tax rate for 2026 and the size of the proposed cut for 2027 remain to be confirmed. Whether EVs registered before 2026 retain residual entitlements under the old rules is not confirmed. It is also not established which power value (rated or peak) appears in field 76 for electric cars; the media criticise the use of peak power.
The Auto-Check works out how much you save overall with an electric car, using your own assumptions.
As of: September 2026. All information without guarantee. The tax bill and the cantonal road traffic office are authoritative.
