The French government’s “social leasing” program for electric vehicles, which allows low-income households to lease with an option to buy, has returned with a few modifications.
The first edition, launched at the start of 2024, ended after six weeks with more than 50,000 confirmed orders, twice the initial expectation. Given this success and the associated costs, the program was halted early.
This time, the program is planned from the outset to finance 50,000 electric cars, of which 5,000 are reserved for people living or working in low-emission zones. The budget is approximately €370 million.
All offers are under €200 per month, with the cheapest at €95, for a term of at least three years. These costs do not cover options, insurance, or maintenance. Applicants must be of legal age, reside in France, and have a taxable reference income less than or equal to €16,300. They must also commute by car more than 15 km to work or drive over 8,000 km per year for professional reasons. One must not have benefited from the scheme in 2024, and the program is now open to overseas territories.
A simulator from the Ministry for Ecological Transition allows potential buyers to check their eligibility. The list of eligible models, from about a dozen brands including Peugeot, Citroën, Renault, Volkswagen, Fiat, Skoda, and Ford, is also available online.
Renault expects the program to be a major success again, having already registered “several thousand” pre-approved files. The CEO of Renault France, Guillaume Sicard, anticipates it will take “five to ten working days” to reach the 50,000-vehicle threshold this year.
Grégory Caret, director of the consumer observatory at UFC-Que Choisir, stated that this was “a demand to meet,” given the “discouraging” prices of new cars. Electric charging operators also welcome the scheme’s return, pointing to a significant purchasing-power gain from switching to an electric vehicle.
However, it is not certain that social leasing will be renewed in the future. The Agency for Ecological Transition and Energy Management specified that there was “no commitment to renew the operation each year.”
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