South Korea is offering an opportunity for consumers to receive up to KRW 6.8 million in government subsidies when replacing an internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle with a new electric vehicle this year.
According to the “2026 Guidelines for Electric Vehicle Subsidy Administration,” finalized by the Ministry of Climate on January 13, the maximum base government subsidy for EV purchases is KRW 5.7 million. An additional KRW 100,000 is provided for vehicles equipped with Plug and Charge (PnC) functionality, which enables automatic user authentication and payment upon connecting the charging cable.
Furthermore, owners who replace an ICE vehicle that has been in service for more than three years with an electric or hydrogen vehicle are eligible for a transition support subsidy equivalent to approximately 20% of the base government subsidy, bringing the total subsidy to as much as KRW 6.8 million.
Under these conditions, consumers can purchase major EV models such as Hyundai Motor’s The New Ioniq 6 and Kia’s The New EV6 at a significantly reduced cost.
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