Workplace Charging Scheme
This grant is for state-funded schools and education institutions to install electric vehicle chargepoint sockets at their site(s).
When working with EEM to install your EV charger, our engineers will complete a free survey of your property to establish the best option for you. From here, the team will arrange a time and day to install your EV charger, minimising disturbance and maximising efficiency.
Summary
The Workplace Charging Scheme provides support for organisations towards the cost of installing up to 40 electric vehicle chargepoint sockets at their sites.
The scheme covers up to 75% of the total costs of the purchase and installation of EV chargepoints (including VAT), capped at a maximum of:
It is open to eligible:
There is a separate scheme with a different grant amount for state-funded education institutions.
We are an OZEV authorised installer, therefore we can install all chargepoints.
The scheme is available in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. It is not available in the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man.
Eligibility
The site
You must own the property or have consent from the landlord for chargepoints to be installed at the site(s) listed in the application.
Your site will need to have dedicated off-road parking that is clearly associated with the premises. If you do not own it, you will need permission from the landowner.
You should have your site surveyed by us before you apply for the grant.
Working from home
If your primary place of work is also a residential property (your home), you can apply for the grant under this scheme as long as your address is either:
You must have off-road parking.
If you are installing a chargepoint at your home, you must use:
If you choose a residential only chargepoint from the list your claim will be declined.
You will need to complete a manual application form and email it to workplacechargingscheme@dvla.gov.uk.
Employers can also install chargepoints at employee’s homes for company vehicles where the employee cannot charge their vehicle at work.
You may need to provide DVLA with evidence that the employee works for you and that you have permission to install chargepoints.
Parking
You must be able to provide evidence that the parking is for your staff or fleet, not for customer use. It must be either on-site or a reasonable distance from the place of work.
You must have parking spaces that are suitable for chargepoint installations. All chargepoint parking must be designated to you, although the rest of the car park may be shared with other organisations.
If you're a business, your chargepoints can only be used by your staff/fleets but you can allow local residents to use outside of office hours when they will not typically be used by your staff or fleet vehicles.
If you're a public authority, charity or small accommodation business, there is no restriction on who may use the parking - customers, guests, visitors, staff or others.
You may make the chargepoints available for use by the public. If you do so, you must comply with the Public Chargepoint Regulations 2023 and associated guidance.
Financial assistance
You are allowed to receive up to £315,000 in minimal financial assistance (MFA) over 3 financial years. This includes:
Any paperwork you receive for such payments will state clearly that it is minimal financial assistance (previously de minimis or small amounts of financial assistance) state aid.
See Subsidy Control rules: quick guide to key requirements for public authorities for details.
In claiming this grant, you must not exceed £315,000 in minimal financial assistance over the last 3 financial years. Three financial years means the previous 2 financial years and the current one.
If you are a public authority you are not required to make a de minimis or MFA declaration during the application process.
Evidence required
You need to provide one of these:
a business rate (non-domestic) bill issued to you by your local council or by the Land and Property Services (LPS)
Charities, NHS surgeries and schools and colleges may not have any of this documentation. In this case, they can upload alternative documentation, using the upload field for the business rate (non-domestic rate) bill.
Charities can upload a copy of their registration to the Charity Commission or a letter from a principal regulator.
NHS surgeries registered at the NHS Digital ODS Portal (England and Wales), NHS inform (Scotland) or Find a GP practice (Northern Ireland) can upload a pdf document showing the name and address of the surgery.
The person applying for the grant must apply for the grant using the NHS email domain (such as @nhs.net, @nhs.scot or @hscni.net) and the address of the installation site must be the same as the address registered with the NHS.
The following information is for education institutions that are not state-funded. See separate guidance for WCS for state-funded education institutions.
Schools and colleges in England and Wales registered at Get Information about Schools can upload a pdf document of ‘establishment details’ showing the establishment’s ID number.
Schools in Northern Ireland registered at Department of Education Institution Search can upload a pdf document of ‘institution details’ showing the institution’s reference number.
Schools in Scotland listed at Parent Zone can upload a pdf document of ‘school details’ showing the school’s SEED number.
The person applying for the grant on behalf of a school or college needs to make sure their email address domain matches the email domain of the school or college concerned.
If you cannot provide any of these documents, we will not issue you with a voucher.
If you are unsure about the eligibility of your organisation, contact the DVLA at workplacechargingscheme@dvla.gov.uk.
EV infrastructure grant for staff and fleets for small to medium sized enterprises
This grant can be used with the EV infrastructure grant for staff and fleets, which helps fund both the installation of chargepoints and the cost of chargepoint infrastructure.
Both grants may be used for the same site, but not the same chargepoints.
If you are using both grants, you must:
Any attempt to claim the same chargepoint twice by submitting a WCS and EV grant application for the same chargepoint will be viewed as fraud. This will result in action being taken against you.
Sites that are not eligible for this scheme
These sites are not eligible for the scheme:
Objectives
The aim of the scheme is to help the transition to electric vehicles through accelerating the provision of chargepoints in workplaces.
Dates
Funding is confirmed until 31 March 2025.
The grant is open. The government reserves the right to end or change this grant scheme.
If the grant ends or the grant amount changes, the government will:
How to apply
To apply
Use the Workplace Charging Scheme (WCS) application form to apply for the grant.
If your application is successful
If your application is successful, you will be emailed a voucher code within 5 working days. You can give this to us
The email will also give:
The voucher will be valid for 180 days.
Once the chargepoints have been installed, the installer will claim the grant. The chargepoints must be installed and the grant claimed within 180 days of the voucher’s issue date.
We will not charge you before we have received the payment. It will be deducted from your final invoice.
If your application is unsuccessful
If your application is unsuccessful, you may appeal by emailing the DVLA at workplacechargingscheme@dvla.gov.uk. Your case will be reviewed by a manager. The outcome of this appeal is final.
Supporting information
If you have any questions about your application you can:
If your circumstances have changed
If your circumstances have changed since you originally applied to the WCS, you must contact us to tell us what has changed. They will be able to tell you whether you are still eligible to have a chargepoint installed. You may have to reapply for a voucher with your amended details.
If you proceed with your installation following a change in your circumstances that has invalidated your application, OZEV reserves the right to take any action it deems appropriate to reclaim the grant.
We will not grant exceptions for locations that do not meet our eligibility criteria .
If the installation cannot be completed within the 180 days
If the installation (or part of it) cannot be completed by your voucher’s expiry date, email workplacechargingscheme@dvla.gov.uk to withdraw your application and reapply for a new voucher. Vouchers are non-transferable.
If some chargepoints on your voucher have been completed by the expiry date but others have not, your installer will need to claim the installations completed and you will need to reapply for a new voucher for the remaining installations. In these circumstances, installations completed before the new voucher has been issued will not be eligible.
Installation of subsequent chargepoints
You may apply for subsequent vouchers for additional chargepoints and sites – provided your cumulative total does not exceed 40 sockets.
For instance, if 10 chargepoint sockets were initially claimed, you will be eligible for 30 further sockets.
Moving an existing chargepoint
The chargepoint may be moved, but OZEV will not contribute to the cost of doing this.
Decommissioning of chargepoints
If the chargepoint needs to be removed or taken out of commission within this 3-year period, you must tell the DVLA and give a brief explanation.
Email workplacechargingscheme@dvla.gov.uk.
This may result in the grant being reclaimed.
How to change the site(s) of your intended installation
It is not possible to change the site where you wish to install the chargepoints. Vouchers are non-transferable.
If you wish to change the site(s) where the chargepoints are due to be installed, you will need to:
email workplacechargingscheme@dvla.gov.uk and request to withdraw your current voucher
reapply for a new voucher at your preferred site address
Tax
If you provide your employees with workplace facilities to charge an EV used by them (including as a passenger), you will not be taxed on the cost of electricity if certain conditions are met. You can find more information in HMRC’s Employment Income Manual.
Businesses can potentially claim 100% of the costs of installing an electric vehicle charging point as a capital allowance. Some of the expenditure may also qualify for the new super deduction, equating to a 130% enhanced deduction of the total cost.
Help with wider responsibilities of property owners and managers
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 requires property managers and owners to:
This should be updated when installing EV chargepoints.
The government has produced fire safety guidance for covered car parks.
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