Charging company cars at home – what businesses need to know from 2026

Why home charging matters for company cars

For many employees, charging at home is the most convenient and efficient option. Companies also benefit, as it reduces the strain on on-site charging points, increases flexibility for employees, and allows charging processes to be planned and tracked more transparently. In many cases, cheaper private electricity tariffs can also lead to cost advantages.

To make use of these benefits, companies need clear and verifiable records of when and how much electricity was used to charge a company vehicle – especially from 2026 onwards.

New BMF requirements from 2026

The BMF directive (subject: “Tax exemption under Section 3 No. 46 EStG and flat-rate taxation of wage tax under Section 40 (2) sentence 1 No. 6 EStG; tax treatment of electricity costs borne by the employee”) introduces several important changes for employers.

1. Existing monthly lump sums end on 31 December 2025

Until the end of 2025, companies may continue using the familiar lump-sum values. From 2026 onwards, these lump sums will no longer be permitted.

2. New electricity price allowance from 2026

Businesses must choose between two billing methods:

• Option A: Billing based on actual electricity costs

  The consumed kWh and associated energy costs must be documented precisely.

  Option B: Billing using the new electricity price allowance

• This allowance is calculated based on the average electricity price for private households (annual consumption 5,000–15,000 kWh) published by the Federal Statistical Office.
  The price from the first half of the previous year applies, rounded down to full cents, and multiplied by the verified charging volume.

• This means the allowance is no longer a fixed monthly figure, but varies depending on the actual amount of energy charged.

3. Annual choice – no mixing of methods

At the start of each calendar year, companies must decide which method they will use. The choice applies for the whole year and cannot be changed mid-year.

4. Charging at the workplace remains tax-free – even with third-party operators

Charging on company premises continues to be tax-free, even if the charging infrastructure is operated by a third party or provides access to external users. This offers additional planning security.

5. Higher documentation and verification requirements

iManual Excel lists, estimated values or incomplete records will no longer be sufficient in the future. From 2026, all charging processes must be clearly assigned to a vehicle, fully documented in a tamper-proof manner and veryfiably traceable. The data must also be easy to evaluate for HR, finance and tax consultants.

The challenge: compliant billing without excessive effort

Companies face key questions:

• • How to separate private and business charging?

• • How to document consumption in a legally compliant and audit-proof way?

• • How to provide correct data for HR, Finance, and tax advisers?

• • How to keep the process simple and error-free for employees?

Without digital support, the administrative burden quickly becomes high – and with it, the risk of errors.

How to enable legally compliant home charging

A professional solution for charging company cars at home enables automatic recording of all charging processes, clear assignment to vehicle and user and a clear separation between private and business charging processes. Consumption data is documented in a legally compliant manner and is available at all times in a complete and audit-proof form. This allows companies to benefit from transparent, scalable and efficient processes – without any additional work for employees.

What companies should do now

The new rules make one thing clear:

From 2026, accuracy, transparency, and documentation requirements will increase significantly.
Companies should therefore introduce digital and structured processes early on to reduce risks and ensure clear responsibilities.

Home charging for company cars – how reev supports businesses

With the reev Energy & Charging Platform, all business-related charging sessions are automatically recorded, clearly assigned to each vehicle, and documented in a fully compliant manner. Energy consumption and costs can be traced transparently at any time – without manual work or error-prone spreadsheets.

For employees, the experience is seamless: they charge at home as usual, while all relevant data is processed securely in the background and prepared for billing. Companies receive clear, audit-ready records that simplify processes for HR, Finance, and tax advisers.

The result: reduced administrative workload, fair and transparent cost allocation, and smooth processes for everyone involved – supported by the intelligent, hardware-agnostic and future-proof reev Platform.