The Australian Government is devising a road-user charge for passenger vehicles, and it could be levied against all drivers – not just owners of electric vehicles (EVs).
The surge of new EV sales nationwide means there are fewer motorists paying an excise on petrol and diesel, with the road-user charge proposed to compensate for the taxation shortfall.
Scott Maynard, the managing director of Polestar Australia – one of a handful of brands selling only electric models – says the company has been working with government officials to help design the road-user charge.
“We see the inevitable introduction of a road-user charge, and we feel that it’s critical that [the] charge be levied against all road users, and not just electric vehicle owners,” Mr Maynard told CarExpert.
“We don’t have a congestion tax in Australia. We don’t have any other form of pollution tax, as such, and so it would make sense that a road user charge be levelled fairly and evenly across all users,” he explained.
The federal government currently adds 53.7 cents per litre to all sales of petrol and diesel – increasing biannually, based on Consumer Price Index (CPI) figures.
“[The introduction of a road-user charge] could be met by a review of the fuel excise that then remains, and that would then, in a sense, become similar to a congestion or output tax, which would continue to make electric vehicles cheaper to own, and allow them to be a credible choice for Australian drivers. That’s, I think, really important,” Mr Maynard added.
In August 2026, the federal Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Chris Bowen, said more work needed to be done on the road-user charge – all but confirming it was happening.
“I think a road-user charge is something that Australia should be working towards. It’s got to be done right. It’s got to be done carefully. That includes timing.
“It’s a very big undertaking. It should not be rushed unnecessarily. The Treasurer and I are of one mind on that,” he said during an address to the National Press Club.
“No one in the EV industry says we oppose a road-user charge ever. They say do it right, plan it well, get all the designs right – and when the time is right, it’ll be an important part of ensuring that the transport revolution in Australia,” Mr Bowen said at the time.
“It’s important it happens, but it’s important it be done right. It’s important it’s not rushed in a way which threatens getting it right.”
As reported earlier this month, the NSW Government currently has plans to introduce its own road-user charge for electric cars and plug-in hybrids in July 2027 – paying 3.095 and 2.476 cents per kilometre, respectively.
This, despite the High Court of Australia striking down a similar tax imposed by the Victorian Government back in 2023, concluding that only the federal parliament can “impose duties of customs and excise” – entitling those who had paid the unlawful tax to claim a refund from authorities.
MORE: Electric Vehicle Council wants NSW Road User Charge scrapped after ‘absurd’ Victorian tax
