Tesla products are now excluded from P.E.I.'s electric vehicle rebate program

Teslas are no longer eligible for electric vehicle rebates on Prince Edward Island, the provincial government says.

The province acted immediately when the P.E.I. Automobile Dealers Association requested that Teslas be dropped from the rebate program, said Gilles Arsenault, minister of environment, energy and climate action.

There are no Tesla dealerships on P.E.I., and a news release about the decision urged Islanders "to consider purchasing from a dealership with a local presence."

But in an interview with CBC News on Tuesday, Arsenault also cited the ongoing trade war between Canada and the United States, where Tesla is headquartered. 

"If you're looking at Elon Musk, who's the owner and operator of Tesla, he's directly involved with the decision-making process in the U.S. with the tariffs," he said. "As a country, we can't stand for that, and we won't."

Provinces such as Nova Scotia, Manitoba and British Columbia have also opted to hit the brakes on Tesla electric vehicle rebates. Protests at Tesla dealerships and vandalism of Tesla vehicles has been reported across the country.

The change to rebates on P.E.I. applies to all purchases as of March 25, 2025. Any Teslas purchased before March 25 will still be eligible for the rebate. 

For electric vehicles, the P.E.I. rebate amounts to $5,750. For plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, the rebate is $3,250.

'Not acceptable'

The rationale behind cancelling the rebate for Tesla vehicles is partly economic and partly political, Arsenault said. 

"Tesla's association with the U.S. administration and their tariffs is causing issues and we want to do our part," he said. "We also want to act in solidarity with other provinces." 

The minister said removing the rebate incentive was one way his department could take action — so it did. 

"We want to make sure that we stand together, we stand strongly together, and we support each other here in Canada," he said. "The way that we've been treated by our friends to the south of the border is not acceptable."