In Norway, plug-in cars are exempt from sales tax and VAT assessments. On top of that, the purchasing price of new EVs is very competitive with the price of new conventional cars, as the latter ones come with very high sales taxes. However, in the land of milk and honey for EV owners, things might soon take a substantial turn.
The Norwegian government has announced there's a strong possibility that advantages for electric vehicles - like free or preferential car-parking in the cities, having unlimited access to bus and commuter lanes, paying no tolls on Norwegian highways, ferries, and bridges, paying a low annual road fee and no sales tax - may soon be coming to an end or at least become restricted.
The reason is not only re-evaluating Norway's incentive package - things might also change because the number of electric vehicles is growing so rapidly that there are (in some cities, at least) actually too many on the streets, taking too much public space from other means of transport, including buses. EV owners will therefore sooner or later face some new restrictions, like no more free parking in certain areas.
However, until the end of 2017, when Norway will have to make a decision on whether to renew the exemptions for EVs or change them, sales tax and VAT assessments will stay as they are.
Norway is a country blessed with abundant hydroelectric power, so their aim at making all new cars emission-free by 2025 isn't at all far-fetched. This aim includes having all municipal vehicles to be electric by 2015 and all public transit to be fossil-fuel-free by 2020.