Workplace Charging Scheme: up to £500 per electric vehicle charging socket

This scheme helps businesses install new electric vehicle charging at their workplaces. It contributes to buying and installing chargepoint sockets, with the grant claimed by your authorised installer after the work is completed. Businesses in Greater Manchester can apply because the scheme covers the whole UK.

Businesses, charities, public sector organisations and small accommodation businesses can apply. An ordinary business needs off-road parking allocated to its staff or fleet and associated with its premises. You must own the site or have the landowner’s permission.

Prepare your Companies House number, VAT number or a business rates bill. The grant must leave you within the £315,000 minimal financial assistance limit across the current and previous two financial years, taking account of the relevant business group. Declare other public support received or pending and whether the business belongs to a linked enterprise or group under common control.

A business operating mainly from home may qualify if its home address is recorded as the place of business at Companies House or on its business rates bill, and it has off-road parking. Use a chargepoint eligible for both residential and commercial use. Charities, public authorities and small accommodation businesses have broader permitted users, including visitors and guests; the standard staff or fleet restriction applies to ordinary businesses.

The installation cannot be compulsory under building regulations or a planning condition. Customer-only parking for an ordinary business, unbuilt parking, parking not allocated to the applicant and locations that have already claimed under the relevant schemes do not qualify.

Existing electric vehicle ownership is not required: the application form accepts an identified future need for charging or plans to encourage uptake. All businesses must complete the relevant declarations, including the linked-enterprise question and the statement of charging need.²

The business must be trading and solvent. An authorised installer, its related business or a business in which its directors have an interest cannot apply for the grant for itself. Do not claim for a compulsory installation or equipment already funded by another public grant.³

The grant covers up to 75% of eligible purchase and installation costs, including VAT, capped at £500 per socket and 40 sockets across all your sites. The maximum possible grant is therefore £20,000. You pay at least 25% of the eligible cost, plus any amount above the socket cap and costs outside the grant.

Agree the complete installation price and your remaining contribution in advance. The authorised installer must deduct the grant from your invoice before claiming it, and the invoice must show the reasonable installation cost that would have applied without the grant.

You remain responsible for electricity, maintenance and any back-office costs. Chargepoints must remain serviceable and available for use for at least three years; tell DVLA if a funded chargepoint will be removed or taken out of service during that period.

The current scheme closes on 31 March 2027, with the official listing showing 11:59pm. Apply and obtain approval before installation. A voucher lasts 180 days: both installation and the installer’s claim must be completed within that period. If the work cannot finish before expiry, contact DVLA to withdraw the voucher and apply again before proceeding with the remaining work.

First arrange a site survey with an OZEV-authorised installer, agree the number and location of sockets, obtain the landowner’s permission where needed and confirm that your chosen equipment is an eligible model. Prepare the organisation’s registration or rates evidence, contact details, site addresses and socket counts, plus its public funding declaration.

Apply through the WCS online application service. If you cannot use the portal, or your small business operates mainly from a residential property, the publicly downloadable Word application form is an alternative: complete it and send it to workplacechargingscheme@dvla.gov.uk. Your organisation must complete and submit its own application; your installer claims the grant after installation.⁴

The Word form has three main sections: business information; the sockets and installation sites; and eligibility and conditions of use. It asks for business and linked-enterprise details, the main and alternative contacts, employee numbers, existing or future charging needs, each site’s address and survey status, and the number of sockets. An authorised person signs the business declaration, and a separate signed financial assistance declaration is required unless the applicant is a public authority.

A successful application normally produces a voucher by email within five working days. Give it to your authorised installer and arrange the work before it expires. The installer checks the voucher, completes the eligible installation, deducts the grant from your invoice and claims it. Keep the application, permissions, invoices and supporting evidence available for any audit.