You only have until April 17 to get a hot deal on an electric car before stricter tax credit rules go into effect, making some models ineligible

• The US has provided more detailed information on whether certain EVs will qualify for tax credits.

• The new rules will halve the current credit amount for certain models and disqualify others.

• Car buyers have until April 17 to get a hot deal before stricter rules kick in.

Car buyers interested in going electric have until April 17 to get a hot deal before stricter rules surrounding tax credits for plug-in purchases go into effect.

The Treasury Department on Friday released long-awaited details about the Inflation Reduction Act, adding new stipulations for getting EV tax credits that went into effect at the start of the year.

The new rules halve the credit amount for certain models and disqualify others entirely, so it could pay to act fast.

Starting on April 18, the EV tax credit will be split into two halves. A model will be eligible for $3,750 of incentives if at least 40% of its battery minerals (determined by value) were extracted or processed in the US (or obtained through a country the US has a free trade agreement with). The other $3,750 comes into play if at least 50% of the value of a vehicle's battery components comes from North America. Those percentage requirements will increase in the years following.

The whole point is to bolster domestic EV manufacturing and reduce the nation's dependence on China, where most EV battery materials and production comes from.

Until those rules go into effect, you can still get the full $7,500 incentive on purchases that meet less stringent criteria. Right now, qualifying EVs need to be made in North America and cost under a certain amount, and their buyers need to meet income caps. The Internal Revenue Service has posted a short list of plug-in vehicles that may qualify in the meantime.