ev tax victoria high court

Victoria’s EV road‑user charge took a trip to the High Court and came back with a “do not pass go” stamp.

In October 2023, the Court ruled the per‑kilometre ZLEV charge (about 2.5–2.6 cents/km for EVs) was effectively an excise, which only the Commonwealth can levy—so the state scheme was invalid.

Result: no more charging for those kilometres, and refunds for amounts paid are being processed.

Other states quietly put their own kilometre taxes back in the drawer (for now) while a national scheme simmers on the policy stove.

You’ll still pay rego, tolls and for the electrons, just not Victoria’s per‑km sting.