The starting price of a Tesla Model 3 — after federal tax credits — may once again be below the notorious $35,000 mark. Tesla’s website now claims EVERY new Model 3 is eligible for the full $7,500 federal tax credit in the United States, after the credits were previously cut in half on April 18th for entry-level Standard Range and Long Range RWD models .
Here in California, a short drive from Tesla’s Fremont factory, I’ll pay $41,630 before taxes — but only $32,130 after federal and state incentives, which says Tesla is right that the Its cars already qualify for the full federal credit. It can be as low as $30,000 depending on your state’s incentives.
Screenshot by Sean Hollister / The Verge
The reason some vehicles stop qualifying is because their batteries don’t meet the sourcing requirements, which specify that 40 percent of their minerals must be “mined or processed in the United States or a treaty partner of free-trade in the US” and 50 percent of their components must be “manufactured or assembled in North America.”
Those percentages increase every year – by 2027, 80 percent of battery minerals and components must meet the requirements for cars to qualify for the credit.
Not every car or family can qualify for the $7,500 tax credit, either: you have to be below a certain income, and you can’t put too many accessories on a Tesla or it will hit a cap on price.
