Company cars must be compulsorily electric by 2026. The future of Belgian mobility looks green, especially when you know that there are around 600,000 company cars driving around in our country. Although an electric car does involve a different infrastructure, because without a charging station at your home or workplace, you won't get very far. The question remains: will your employer give you a charging station or not?
Do I need to install a charging station for my employees?
An employer is not obliged to install a charging station at your home. If he does, the costs will be fully borne by the employer. A charging station at your home is an added luxury if you often use the car outside work too.
If you do not get a charging station at home, in many cases there are also charging stations provided in the workplace car park for which you will then get a charging pass. You are also free to install your own charging station at home.
Who pays for the charging station?
If your employer installs the charging station on your premises, you already pay nothing for it as an employee. The employer assumes the cost which - depending on the charging station - can be as much as €3,500.
Whether you have to pay an expense allowance as an employer when your employee invests in a charging station themselves is still unclear. You can grant an expense allowance, but it is best to do so through a ruling to make sure the employee is paid correctly.
What about electricity costs?
Charging your car with electricity, obviously costs money. You cannot use a fuel card for an electric car because your charging station works through your own electricity network. And this way you pay for the charging consumption yourself in the first place. Moreover, the employer is not obliged to (re)pay these costs. If they do, there are various options.
Either the supplier of the charging station records how much energy you consume, and refunds that amount to you. The supplier then invoices the sum to your employer. Your charging station must then be equipped with a separate counter. This system is called split billing.
Another way for an employee is to submit a home charging bill to his or her employer. That may seem simple, only that route is not always feasible as charging stations usually do not keep track of how much your energy consumption costs.
In that case, a flat-rate expense report is an option. This way, you will receive a guaranteed refund, although not necessarily equal to the actual cost.
Point being, this system is not a straightforward one. And that is why we have written another blog on how the employer pays for electricity costs.
New job, new charging station?
If you change jobs or are made redundant, you should check your car policy to see what happens to the charging station. You can take over the charging station by agreeing an amount with your employer. That amount will depend on how long your charging station has been there. Otherwise, your employer will come and remove the charging station.
Benefit in kind
Clear tax rules for employer reimbursement of electricity costs associated with your charging station are not yet in place. Although the costs are taxed on benefit in kind if you also use your company car privately.
More questions about electric driving? Is it still not completely clear to you how to integrate electric driving into your business? And what does the mobility budget have to do with it? We’d love to have a chat with you!