Company Car Home Charging: Flat Rate Gone in 2026

The Old System (Until December 31, 2025)

Until the end of 2025, employers could reimburse monthly flat rates tax-free (BMF letter of 29 Sep 2020, para. 24):

• Fully electric vehicles without employer charging: €70 per month
• Fully electric vehicles with employer charging: €30 per month
• Hybrid vehicles without employer charging: €35 per month
• Hybrid vehicles with employer charging: €15 per month

For 2017 to 2020 lower rates applied (€50/€20 and €25/€10). The flat rates apply for the last time to pay periods ending before January 1, 2026.

There was an alternative even then: if the actual costs of a month exceeded the flat rate, the employer could reimburse the actual costs instead (BMF letter 2020, para. 26). The new letter applies to all open cases from 2017. Its rules for determining actual costs — meter, tariff, share of the base fee — therefore also apply to the years up to 2025.

The New System (From January 1, 2026)

Since January 1, 2026, the charged energy is always metered and valued at one of two electricity prices:

Option 1 — actual costs at your tariff: The price in your contract with your electricity supplier usually applies. In addition to the energy price per kWh, a base fee you pay must be taken into account proportionally (para. 28). With a dynamic tariff, the average monthly cost per kWh including the proportional base fee may be used. A self-issued receipt for the electricity price is not permitted.

Option 2 — electricity price flat rate: Instead of your own tariff, the average household electricity price published by the Federal Statistical Office may be used — the value for the first half of the previous year, rounded down to full cents (para. 30). For 2026 that is 34 cents per kWh (published: 34.36 cents). The flat rate covers all electricity costs of the home charging point, including the base fee.

Important for both options:

• The amount must be metered. Para. 27 requires a separate stationary or mobile electricity meter — meters inside the wallbox or the vehicle are named explicitly.
• The choice applies to the whole calendar year. Tariff or flat rate is chosen uniformly for the calendar year (para. 30).
• Public charging comes on top. Electricity bought from a third party, e.g. at a public charger, may be reimbursed additionally against receipts (para. 31).

And for a private car: if the employer reimburses electricity costs for a private vehicle, that is taxable wages (para. 25). Business trips with a private car can instead be reimbursed tax-free as travel expenses (§ 3 No. 16 EStG), for example with the statutory per-kilometre rates.

Comparison: Old vs. New

How the change affects you financially depends heavily on your charging behavior. Three examples for fully electric company cars without employer charging, calculated with the electricity price flat rate:

Scenario A — 200 kWh/month (average driver):

• Old: €70 × 12 = €840 per year
• New (flat rate): 200 × €0.34 × 12 = €816 per year
• Difference: -€24 (virtually the same)

Scenario B — 300 kWh/month (frequent driver):

• Old: €70 × 12 = €840 per year
• New (flat rate): 300 × €0.34 × 12 = €1,224 per year
• Difference: +€384 per year

Scenario C — 100 kWh/month (infrequent driver):

• Old: €70 × 12 = €840 per year
• New (flat rate): 100 × €0.34 × 12 = €408 per year
• Difference: -€432 per year

The break-even point is approximately 206 kWh per month. Charge more and the new system results in a higher amount, charge less and it results in a lower one. With your own tariff the numbers change: if your energy price plus the share of the base fee is above 34 cents, the tariff results in more.

All figures are calculation examples. What your employer actually reimburses depends on your metered kWh and your agreement.

What You Need to Document Now

• Separate meter: A meter that measures only the charging energy — for example the meter in the wallbox, a sub-meter or the meter in the vehicle (para. 27). The BMF letter does not mention calibration or MID compliance; whether your employer requires it is something to agree with them.
• Charged kWh per session: The amount must come from the meter, not from an estimate. Recording each charge promptly is easier than a monthly total from memory.
• Electricity contract: If you use your own tariff, you need the contract or bill from your supplier. A self-issued receipt is not enough (para. 28).
• Base fee and household consumption: For the proportional base fee you need the base fee from your contract and a basis for splitting it. The letter does not specify how the share is calculated; a common approach is the ratio of charging energy to total household consumption.
• Receipts for public charging: Invoices from charging providers, where you paid yourself.
• Business/private separation: If a private car also charges at the same wallbox, the company car's charges must be separately verifiable.

Common Mistakes During the Transition

1. Continuing to pay the old flat rate

The monthly flat rates apply for the last time to pay periods before January 1, 2026. Anyone still paying them in 2026 should clarify this with payroll right away.

2. No separate meter

Without a meter that records only the charging energy there is no metered amount — and therefore no basis for either the tariff or the flat rate. Many wallboxes have such a meter built in; it's worth checking the data sheet.

3. Estimates instead of measurements

"I charge roughly 200 kWh per month" — that's not enough. Para. 27 requires proof by meter. Paper notes and Excel spreadsheets make this proof tedious.

4. Forgetting the base fee

If you use your own tariff and only count the energy price, you calculate too little: the base fee must be taken into account proportionally (para. 28). The flat rate already includes it.

5. Missing business/private separation

Anyone who also uses the wallbox privately (e.g., for a second car) must cleanly separate the company car's share. The easiest way is with an app that manages vehicles separately — like ChargeDoc.

6. Catching up on documentation at year-end

Anyone who enters all 12 months at year-end has gaps that can no longer be closed. Promptly recorded charges are the cleaner proof.

Special Cases: Hybrid, Solar, Rental Apartment, Private Car

Hybrid vehicles

From 2026, the same rules apply to plug-in hybrids as to fully electric vehicles. Consumption is usually lower (50–100 kWh/month): until 2025 there was €35/month, today at 75 kWh × €0.34 it is €25.50/month, for example.

Solar panels (PV system)

If the wallbox is also fed by your own photovoltaic system, you may still use your supplier's household tariff, including the proportional base fee (para. 29). The electricity price flat rate explicitly also applies with solar (para. 30). You do not have to use a lower "solar electricity price".

Rental apartment without wallbox

In a rental apartment without your own wallbox, charging via a household outlet (Schuko) is possible, but measurement is difficult. An intermediate energy measurement adapter can be a mobile meter in the sense of para. 27; agree with your employer beforehand whether it is accepted. The cleanest solution is a wallbox with a built-in meter — as a tenant you can require the landlord to permit the installation of a charging point under § 554 BGB.

Private car

For a private EV the tax exemption does not apply: reimbursed electricity costs are taxable wages (para. 25). Business trips can instead be reimbursed as travel expenses (§ 3 No. 16 EStG).

Tariff or Flat Rate — Which Fits?

The choice depends on your electricity contract:

• Tariff (energy price plus share of the base fee) above 34 cents per kWh: your own tariff results in the higher amount.
• Tariff below 34 cents per kWh: the flat rate results in more — for example with cheap tariffs. With a solar system, your supplier's tariff is what counts, not the value of your own solar power.

Important: the choice applies uniformly to the whole calendar year (para. 30). A switch during the year is not provided for.

Austria: Reimbursement Under § 4c Sachbezugswerteverordnung

Austria has its own rule. If an employee charges an emission-free company car at home, the employer can reimburse the costs under § 4c Sachbezugswerteverordnung: metered kWh times the official electricity price of the year. For 2025 that is 35.889 cents per kWh, for 2026 32.806 cents per kWh. The Ministry of Finance sets the 2027 value by the end of November.

• The amount must be attributable to the company car, for example via the wallbox.
• From 2023 to 2025 there was a flat rate of €30 per month if attribution was not possible. From 2026 this flat rate no longer exists.
• Public charging can additionally be reimbursed against receipts; charging at the employer is free of charge.
• Plug-in hybrids are not covered by § 4c; the rule applies only to emission-free vehicles.

What Employers Need to Do Now

1. Stop the monthly flat rate: it is no longer provided for pay periods from January 2026.
2. Check metering: Do all employees with home charging have a separate meter? If not, clarify who pays for a meter or a wallbox.
3. Set the method: tariff or flat rate — the choice applies to the calendar year.
4. Set up monthly data collection: how do kWh, tariff details and receipts get to payroll?
5. Adjust payroll: the tax-free reimbursement must be correctly reflected in payroll.
6. Keep the records: the proof belongs to the payroll records and is subject to their retention periods.

How the ChargeDoc App Helps

• Automatic kWh recording: Via wallbox integration, charging sessions are recorded with the kWh from the wallbox meter. Charges you enter manually can be marked as read from a meter.
• Both methods calculated: From 2026 the app shows tariff and flat rate for the year; up to 2025 it shows per month the flat rate or the higher actual costs. You enter the base fee and household consumption per year, and the app derives the share of the base fee.
• Mark the company car: all charges of the vehicle within its company-car period count, including those recorded automatically. Public charges with receipts are added, charges paid with the employer's charging card are left out.
• Ready-made documentation: reimbursement report as PDF for your employer, DATEV export for your tax advisor and a CSV export of all charges for Excel.
• Clean bookkeeping: gapless voucher numbers, voiding and rebooking instead of deleting, and an optional month-end lock.
• Austria: in the Austrian market the app calculates the reimbursement under § 4c Sachbezugswerteverordnung.

Checklist: Are You Ready for 2026?

1. Separate meter in place? — Check whether your wallbox has a meter, or have a sub-meter installed.
2. Method chosen? — Tariff or the 34-cent flat rate? Compare with your tariff including the share of the base fee.
3. Base fee and household consumption noted? — Both are on your supplier's annual bill.
4. Documentation tool set up? — Install the ChargeDoc app, add your vehicle and mark it as company car. Try free for 14 days.
5. Employer informed? — Clarify with HR which method applies and how data will be transmitted.
6. First month documented? — The first month shows whether the process works.
7. Business/private separated? — If you also use the wallbox privately, separate the vehicles in the app.

Sources

• § 3 EStG, No. 50 (reimbursement of expenses) and No. 16 (travel expenses) (German)
• BMF letter of 11 Nov 2025, IV C 5 - S 2334/00087/014/013, paras. 25 to 31 and application rule (German)
• BMF letter of 29 Sep 2020, paras. 24 and 26 (monthly flat rates until 2025) (German)
• German Federal Ministry of Finance — wage tax (German)
• Austria: § 4c Sachbezugswerteverordnung; official electricity prices published in Findok (Austrian Ministry of Finance) for 2025 and 2026

Note: This article is for information only and is not tax advice. Consult a tax advisor for your individual situation.