California EV registration fee
$121 a year, indexed, charged on top of the normal registration fee.
How it works
The Road Improvement Fee applies to zero-emission vehicles model year 2020 and later. The base is $121 but it rises with the California CPI each year, and the statute caps the indexed amount at $175. Plug-in hybrids are not charged this fee.
Plug-in hybrids are not charged this fee in California.
What it adds up to
Over ten years of ownership the surcharge alone comes to $1,210, before the ordinary registration tax — which every vehicle pays. Compare that with what the same car saves in fuel tax: at 25 mpg and 12,000 miles a year, an average gasoline car burns about 480 gallons, and the federal fuel tax alone is 18.4 cents a gallon.
The point is not that the fee is unfair. It is that the "EVs are cheaper to run" calculation has a second line most buyers never look at, and in a high-fee state that line can absorb a year's worth of charging savings.
Source
Related
California window tint limits · California inspection rules
What charging costs in California: charging cost by state →
Checked November 2026.