Which federal EV and solar tax credits ended, and when

For most of 2023 to 2025, a Delaware household weighing an EV, a heat pump, a rooftop solar array or a garage charger could stack a federal tax credit on top of whatever Delaware offered. That stack is gone. The 2025 budget law, Public Law 119-21, ended the federal credits on a staggered schedule, and the last of the residential ones expired on June 30, 2026. This page sets out exactly when each one stopped, how the IRS decides whether you made the cutoff, and what is still on the table for a Delaware resident in November 2026.

We are not tax professionals. Everything below is taken from the IRS's published FAQ on the 2025 changes and from Delaware program pages, linked at the bottom. If a credit could still apply to you, the person who should confirm it is whoever prepares your return.

The cutoff dates in one table

Federal credit	What it covered	Last date it can apply	Test the IRS uses
30D new clean vehicle	New EVs and plug-in hybrids	Acquired by September 30, 2025	Binding written contract plus a payment
25E previously-owned clean vehicle	Used EVs from dealers	Acquired by September 30, 2025	Same acquisition test
45W commercial clean vehicle	Business EVs and leased vehicles	Acquired by September 30, 2025	Same acquisition test
25C energy efficient home improvement	Heat pumps, insulation, windows, doors, audits	Placed in service by December 31, 2025	Placed in service
25D residential clean energy	Rooftop solar, home batteries, geothermal	Expenditure made by December 31, 2025	Installation completed
30C refueling property	EV chargers and other fueling equipment	Placed in service by June 30, 2026	Placed in service

Every date in that table is now in the past. As of today there is no federal credit for buying an EV, installing solar, adding a battery, upgrading insulation or installing a charger at your home.

Vehicles: the "acquired" test, and the one case still open

The three vehicle credits did not end on a delivery date. The IRS FAQ says a vehicle is "acquired" on the date a written binding contract is entered into and a payment has been made, and it says the payment can be a nominal down payment or a trade-in. So someone who signed an order and put down a deposit on September 29, 2025, met the deadline even if the car was not built yet.

That is the one situation where a 2025-era vehicle credit can still matter in late 2026. The FAQ says a taxpayer may claim the credit even if the vehicle is placed in service after September 30, 2025, as long as it was acquired by that date, and that a vehicle is placed in service when the taxpayer takes possession. In practice that covers a long-backordered vehicle that was contracted and paid on in September 2025 and delivered in 2026. Acquisition on its own is not enough; you also have to take possession. The credit belongs to the tax year in which the vehicle is placed in service, so a 2026 delivery is a 2026 return question.

If you are in that position, keep three documents together: the signed contract with its date, proof of the payment and its date, and the delivery paperwork. Those are the facts the acquisition rule turns on. The FAQ also says the election to transfer the credit to the dealer is made at the time of sale, not at the time of acquisition, so if a dealer offered to apply the credit at delivery, ask what they filed and get a copy.

For anyone shopping now, the federal vehicle question is closed. A dealer who tells you a 2026 purchase or lease "includes the federal credit" should be asked, in writing, which provision they mean. The leasing side is covered in more detail in our post on leasing an EV in Delaware.

Home improvements: 25C ended on a placed-in-service date

The energy efficient home improvement credit is not allowed for any property placed in service after December 31, 2025. That is a different test from the vehicle rule. What mattered was when the heat pump, water heater or windows were installed and ready for use, not when you signed the contractor's proposal or paid the deposit. A heat pump ordered in November 2025 and installed in January 2026 does not qualify. The IRS FAQ also notes that manufacturers no longer need to file the periodic reports the credit used to require, which is a sign of how completely the program has wound down.

If you completed qualifying work in 2025, the credit belonged on your 2025 return, which most people filed in spring 2026. If you missed it, the remedy is an amended return, and that is a conversation for a preparer, not for this site.

Solar and batteries: 25D ended when installation finished, not when you paid

This is the rule that caught the most Delaware homeowners. The residential clean energy credit is not allowed for any expenditure made after December 31, 2025, and the IRS FAQ says an expenditure is treated as made when the original installation of the item is completed. The FAQ is explicit that if installation finished after December 31, 2025, the credit is unavailable even if you paid earlier.

So a solar contract signed and paid in full in October 2025, with panels that went up in February 2026, gets no federal credit. The same is true of a home battery installed in 2026. That is why the Delaware-side incentives now carry the whole weight for a 2026 installation. The two worth knowing are Delmarva Power's Green Energy Program grant, explained on our Green Energy Program page, and the solar-plus-storage pilot covered in our home battery rebate post. Both have their own application rules and funding limits, and neither is a tax credit.

Solar owners also still get the value of net metering, which is not an incentive program at all but a billing rule set by Delaware law. Our net metering explainer walks through what an exported kilowatt-hour is actually worth on a Delmarva bill since 2024.

EV chargers: 30C lasted six months longer, then ended too

The refueling property credit was the last to go. The IRS FAQ says it is not allowed for any property placed in service after June 30, 2026. A home Level 2 charger installed and working by that date could still qualify, subject to the credit's other conditions, including the location requirement in the statute that we have not reproduced here because the IRS FAQ does not restate it. A charger installed in July 2026 or later gets nothing federal.

If your charger went in during the first half of 2026, this is a 2026 return item, so keep the installer's invoice showing the completion date. If it has not gone in yet, Delaware's charger rebate is the only government money involved. The amounts, the licensed-electrician requirement and the application steps are on our charger rebate page.

What a Delaware resident can still get in November 2026

• The Clean Vehicle Rebate. A cash rebate, not a credit, for an eligible new or used battery-electric or plug-in hybrid bought or leased from a licensed dealer on or after May 1, 2026. DNREC lists $2,500 for a new BEV with a base MSRP under $40,000, $1,500 for a new BEV between $40,000 and $50,000, $1,000 for a new PHEV under $50,000, and $2,500 or $1,000 for a used BEV or PHEV with a fair purchase price of $40,000 or less. Apply within 90 days if the dealer does not apply it for you. Full detail is in our vehicle rebate guide.
• The home charger rebate through DNREC's charging equipment program.
• Solar and storage grants through the Green Energy Program and the storage pilot, where funding allows.
• Net metering on any solar system you install.

One tax point carries over from the federal era in a different form. DNREC says the vehicle rebate may be taxable income for federal and Delaware purposes and that recipients are responsible for getting their own advice. A federal credit reduced your tax; a state rebate might add to your income. Ask a preparer which applies to you before you file.

Common mistakes we see in how this gets described

1. Treating the payment date as the solar deadline. For 25D the date that counted was installation completed. Paying in 2025 did not save a 2026 install.
2. Applying the vehicle "acquired" rule to home improvements. 25C and 30C used placed-in-service dates. A deposit did not lock anything in.
3. Assuming the charger credit ended with the vehicle credits. It ran until June 30, 2026, nine months longer.
4. Calling the Delaware rebate a tax credit. It is a payment that may itself be taxable. The difference matters at filing time.
5. Assuming Delaware's amounts are permanent. DNREC says the amounts stay fixed until the program is reevaluated; its page says 2026 and the Drive Electric Delaware FAQ says 2027. Check both before you buy.

FAQ

Is there any federal EV tax credit for a car I buy today?

No. The new, used and commercial clean vehicle credits are not allowed for any vehicle acquired after September 30, 2025, according to the IRS.

I paid my solar installer in 2025 but the system was finished in 2026. Can I claim 25D?

Not according to the IRS FAQ. It treats the expenditure as made when installation is completed and says a credit is unavailable for installation completed after December 31, 2025, even if payment was made earlier.

My charger was installed in May 2026. Is there still a federal credit?

Possibly, because 30C covers property placed in service through June 30, 2026, subject to its other conditions. Confirm the details with a tax professional and keep the invoice that shows the completion date.

Did Delaware end its incentives too?

No. The Clean Vehicle Rebate restarted for vehicles bought or leased on or after May 1, 2026, and the charger and solar programs run separately. Funding and terms can change, so verify on the official pages before you rely on them.