From 1 January 2026, Belgium will introduce a specific environmental contribution on traction batteries for electric and electrified vehicles. Discreet but systematic, this new line item on the invoice for new vehicles is designed to finance the collection and future recycling of batteries. This measure raises questions both about its impact on the purchaser and about the structure of the European recycling industry.
A new line on the invoice
From 2026, when you buy a new electric vehicle in Belgium, you will automatically have to pay an environmental contribution for the traction battery. Unlike registration or circulation taxes, this contribution is not part of traditional regional taxation. It is part of a sector-based approach, directly linked to the life cycle of lithium-ion and similar batteries.
In practical terms, this contribution will appear as a separate line item on the order form and the final invoice for the vehicle. It will be paid by the buyer, whether private or professional, and then transferred by the importer or manufacturer to Febelauto, the organisation responsible for managing end-of-life vehicles and recycling batteries in Belgium and Luxembourg.
Financing tomorrow’s recycling now
The idea is to get current users of electrified vehicles to contribute to financing the future treatment of batteries, well before they reach the end of their life. While the number of electric vehicles is growing rapidly, the majority of batteries currently in circulation have not yet reached recycling age. Peak volumes are expected in the next decade.
The aim of the measure is therefore to secure, as of now, the industrial capacity needed to collect, dismantle and recycle increasingly heavy and complex batteries. It is in line with the logic of extended producer responsibility, but with a clear choice of transparency: the cost is not diluted in the price of the vehicle, it is explicitly visible to the buyer.
A variable amount
The amount of the contribution depends directly on the characteristics of the battery. Febelauto has drawn up a scale based on both the weight of the battery and its chemistry, whether LFP, NMC, NiMH or other technologies. In practice, for an electric passenger car, the contribution will generally range from a few euros to around a hundred euros including tax.
The scope of the contribution is deliberately broad. It applies to all new electrified vehicles registered in Belgium: 100% electric cars, plug-in hybrids, conventional hybrids, as well as light commercial vehicles, trucks, buses, motorbikes and certain trailers where the battery exceeds 25 kg. This also applies to batteries and modules sold through after-sales outlets. A battery replacement or technical upgrade will therefore fall within the scope of the contribution.
A signal for the European recycling industry
The volumes of batteries to be processed will explode in the coming years, and their recycling will largely determine the environmental and economic sustainability of electric vehicles. Belgium is anticipating this surge in demand and seeking to avoid the effects of saturation or excessive dependence on non-European processes. This forward-thinking approach could inspire other markets, at a time when Europe is increasingly questioning its industrial sovereignty in the field of batteries.
With a few dozen euros added to the bill, this contribution alone will not slow down the adoption of electric vehicles. But it does represent a change in philosophy: the transition is no longer limited to the act of purchase or to tailpipe emissions, but fully integrates the question of the end-of-life of technologies. This is a step designed to make the electric vehicle model more credible in the long term.
Sources: Press release 291225 ENVIRONMENTAL CONTRIBUTION EV BATTERIES – ey.com – finances.belgium.be
