Japan Subsidies Cut From Jan 2027: Fuel, Power, EV, Homes

Five subsidies shrink or end between December and March; car buyers and home owners must act in December

*Compiled by this site from materials published by the ministries and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government as of November 9, 2026. The December gasoline schedule is based on press reports of an announcement by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI).

For shop owners, one subsidy starts instead. The subsidy for cash register upgrades ahead of the 1% consumption tax on food from April 2027 is set to open for applications around mid-January.

Housing Energy-Saving 2026: reservations close Nov 16, applications Dec 31

For all four programs in the national Housing Energy-Saving 2026 Campaign (Jutaku Shoene 2026) for water heaters, windows and insulation work, the reservation deadline is Monday, November 16 and the application deadline is Thursday, December 31[MLIT press release (in Japanese)]. If a budget cap is reached, applications close at that point.

For renovation, the application is filed after all work is finished. A reservation secures budget before the work, for 3 months or until December 31, whichever comes first. Without a reservation by November 16, you get no subsidy unless the work is finished and the application filed by December 31.

*As of 0:00 on November 8, 2026. Applications are the total of applications and reservations, including those under review[Housing Energy-Saving 2026 Campaign (in Japanese)]. Updated every morning.

None of the programs has reached 100%, so the deadline is expected to come before the budget runs out. Only registered contractors can apply; residents cannot. If you have ordered work, ask your contractor whether a reservation has been filed.

The subsidy is ¥70,000 to ¥100,000 per EcoCute unit and ¥22,000 to ¥140,000 per inner window. Amounts by device are in Water Heater Energy-Saving 2026 deadlines and amounts, windows in Inner window subsidy 2026, and all four programs in Renovation subsidies 2026. Delivery boxes are also covered by Mirai Eco Homes 2026, but only together with insulation work (Delivery box subsidies 2026).

For fiscal 2027, METI has requested ¥53 billion for the efficient water heater subsidy[METI FY2027 budget request (in Japanese)]. Whether it is approved will be decided in the year-end budget, and the amount and start date are not yet set.

CEV subsidy falls to 60-80% for cars registered from January 1, 2027

The national subsidy for buying electric vehicles and similar cars (the CEV subsidy, Clean Energy Vehicle subsidy) falls for new cars registered on or after January 1, 2027[METI review of subsidy amounts (in Japanese)]. Which amount applies depends not on the contract date or delivery date but on the registration date on the vehicle inspection certificate.

*Caps by category, excluding bonuses based on carmakers' efforts. By model, the Honda Super-ONE and Toyota bZ4X go from ¥1.3M to ¥780,000, and the Nissan Sakura from ¥580,000 to ¥458,000[Next Generation Vehicle Promotion Center, amounts by model (in Japanese)].

Registering this year does not guarantee the subsidy. On November 11, the expected end of applications under the current budget was moved forward to late November to early December (it was early to late December as of October 9)[Next Generation Vehicle Promotion Center, estimated end of applications, 11 November (in Japanese)]. Even if budget remains, only cars registered by February 1, 2027 qualify, and applications must arrive by February 12[Next Generation Vehicle Promotion Center, final deadlines (in Japanese)].

What happens after the budget runs out has not been decided. For fiscal 2027, METI has requested ¥110 billion for the same subsidy. Steps to register this year and amounts by model are in CEV subsidy cut for cars registered from January 2027.

Gasoline and kerosene reference price reaches ¥175 on Dec 17, then ¥5 a month more from January as a rule

The subsidy that holds the national average gasoline price at about ¥170 is cut in steps from December. At an October 29 press conference, the Prime Minister said that from December the government would "as a rule raise the 'reference price' by ¥5 each month toward spring"[Prime Minister's Office, Oct 29 (in Japanese)]. The December schedule, as reported from a METI announcement, is as follows[Nikkei, Oct 30 (in Japanese)].

From November 5 the subsidy is ¥51.9 per liter, and diesel, kerosene and heavy oil receive the same amount[Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, emergency mitigation measures (in Japanese)]. If pump prices rise by as much as the subsidy shrinks, a household buying 50 liters a month pays ¥250 more a month from December 17. Filling up before December 3 saves only about ¥100 per 50 liters.

No end date has been set. On October 30 the government added ¥1.1459 trillion from reserve funds[Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, history of fuel support (in Japanese)]. The cost if prices rise ¥5 a month through March is estimated in Gasoline subsidy cut by ¥5 a month from December. The only cash support for kerosene is municipal "welfare kerosene" (fukushi toyu), and many deadlines fall in February or March (Kerosene subsidies, winter 2026).

Electricity and city gas discount runs from December to February usage; March undecided

The national discount on electricity and city gas is not being cut; it restarts with December usage. The unit discount is largest for the cold months of January and February, and March usage will be considered in light of "weather conditions" and "energy price trends"[Prime Minister's Office, Oct 29 (in Japanese)].

*From [Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, electricity and gas price support (in Japanese)].

No application is needed; power and gas companies deduct the discount from bills. A household using 400 kWh a month saves ¥4,000 over the three months, and one using 30 m³ of city gas a month saves ¥1,200. "December usage" in principle means usage from the December meter reading to the January reading, so the discount first appears on the bill for the January reading. Propane (LP gas) is not covered.

Discounts by usage are in Electricity and gas subsidy for three months from December usage, and the rise in the November bill without support is in How much the November bill rises after the subsidy ends.

Tokyo Zero Emission Points and the Tokyo EV grant end on March 31, 2027

For Tokyo residents, deadlines for the metropolitan programs, separate from the national ones, come at the end of the fiscal year. Both may end earlier if the budget runs out.

*[Tokyo Zero Emission Points (in Japanese)][Cool Net Tokyo, program to promote electric vehicles (in Japanese)]

Tokyo's EV grant is separate from the national CEV subsidy, and as of November 9 Tokyo has not announced any change to its amounts from January. However, an eligible car must be one covered by the national CEV subsidy. Combined national and Tokyo amounts are in Tokyo EV purchase subsidy guide, point amounts in Tokyo Zero Emission Points, and ward and municipal top-ups in Top-ups in Tokyo's 62 municipalities. Programs in other areas can be searched in the subsidy database.

Summary

• Housing Energy-Saving 2026 reservations close on November 16 and applications on December 31. The water heater budget is only 57% used, so the deadline comes first
• For cars registered from January 1, 2027, the CEV subsidy cap for electric vehicles falls from ¥1.25 million to ¥750,000
• The CEV budget is expected to run out in late November to early December (moved forward on 11 November), so even cars registered this year may miss out if the application is late
• The gasoline and kerosene reference price reaches ¥175 on December 17 and, as a rule, rises ¥5 a month from January
• The electricity and city gas discount covers December to February usage; March usage is undecided

References (sources)

• MLIT: start of applications for the Housing Energy-Saving 2026 Campaign (March 30, 2026; reservation and application deadlines)
• Housing Energy-Saving 2026 Campaign official site (applications as a share of budget)
• METI: Water Heater Energy-Saving 2026 / Ministry of the Environment: Advanced Window Renovation 2026, share of budget / MLIT: Mirai Eco Homes 2026
• METI: outline of the FY2027 budget request (PDF)
• METI: review of FY2025 supplementary CEV subsidy amounts (October 21, 2026, PDF)
• METI: FY2025 supplementary Clean Energy Vehicle subsidy (expected end of applications, as of October 9)
• Next Generation Vehicle Promotion Center: subsidy amounts by model (PDF) / final registration and application deadlines (PDF)
• Prime Minister's Office: press conference on emergency mitigation measures (October 29, 2026)
• Agency for Natural Resources and Energy: emergency mitigation measures (subsidy per liter) / history of fuel price support (PDF)
• Nikkei: gasoline subsidy, ¥5 rise over three weeks in December (October 30, 2026)
• Agency for Natural Resources and Energy: electricity and gas price support site
• Tokyo: Tokyo Zero Emission Points overview / Cool Net Tokyo: program to promote electric vehicles

*This article is general information based on materials published by METI, the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, MLIT, the Ministry of the Environment, the Prime Minister's Office and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, and on press reports, as of November 9, 2026. The December gasoline schedule is based on press reports, and amounts from January are not decided. Budget usage changes daily. For individual decisions, check with each program's office, your car dealer or your contractor.