The lack of affordable electric vehicles in Canada won’t come as a surprise to anyone who has been shopping for a car lately. But what might be surprising is that over in Europe, the market is full of affordable EVs from mainstream automakers. There’s a smorgasbord of interesting new EVs for less than $40,000, ready and waiting for us. We just can’t have them, yet.

A report released Thursday from Clean Energy Canada, an environmental think tank based at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, B.C., shows exactly which EVs Canadian drivers are missing out on. The report lists 21 affordable entry-level EVs currently available in Europe, only one of which – the tiny two-door Fiat 500e – is currently for sale in Canada.

Many of those entry-level EVs could certainly find eager buyers here, if only Prime Minister Mark Carney would make good on his recent promise to, “bring more, and more affordable, electric vehicles to Canadians” by choosing to open the door to European-approved vehicles. Allowing the sale in Canada of vehicles that meet European safety standards is an easier, quicker solution than the other options on the table.

All of the 21 models listed in Clean Energy Canada’s report have prices that, when converted from euros to Canadian dollars before tax, are less than $40,000. Obviously, manufacturers could choose to set whatever suggested retail price they want if the cars were to arrive in Canada, but this is a useful ballpark estimate of what the prices might be.

Seven of the cars on the list are from Chinese brands, presumably made in China. And one of them, the ultra-affordable Dacia Spring Electric 45, is from a Romanian brand owned by French firm Renault, but made in China. Europe has a variable tariff – up to 45 per cent – on Chinese-made EVs. (To get around tariffs, Chinese brands are building assembly plants in Europe.)

As it stands in Canada, Chinese-made EVs are subject to a 100-per-cent tariff, which makes them uncompetitive. The federal government is apparently considering adjusting the tariff, in consultation with the U.S. and China, but the need to speed EV uptake must be balanced with the need to preserve our auto manufacturing sector and create more good green-economy jobs in this country.

Even excluding the Chinese-made EVs on the list, as well as the already-available Fiat 500e, it still leaves 12 new affordable EVs that could find plenty of buyers in Canada.

Four of the brands listed – Hyundai, Fiat, Nissan and Toyota – already have extensive dealership networks across the country. And three of the others brands – Opel, Renault and Citroën – are part of conglomerates that own or have ties to brands with existing dealership networks in Canada. That only leaves one brand out, Suzuki, but even it has motorcycle dealerships across the country.

Are these 12 new compact and sub-compact EVs going to suddenly upend the Canadian vehicle market? No. The market will still skew toward larger SUVs and pickups. Many buyers will understandably still want more space and/or driving range, and pay a premium to get it. But, compared to our American neighbours, who dictate which cars end up on sale in our country, Canadians traditionally have a greater appetite for hatchbacks and smaller, more economical vehicles. These machines would fill that hole in our market.

As Tim Reuss, chief executive officer of the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association, previously told me, the hatchback market here is ripe for expansion.

Joanna Kyriazis, director of policy and strategy for Clean Energy Canada, noted that their recent polling has found healthy demand for smaller types of vehicles.

“In our recent poll of residents in the Metro Vancouver and Greater Toronto areas, a third envision their next vehicle will be a sedan or hatchback. But these vehicles are a dying breed in Canada, with almost no smaller affordable options on offer,” she wrote in an e-mail.

The demand is even more pronounced among young people in those regions; 36 per cent of 18 to 29 year-olds polled by Clean Energy Canada said they would prefer a sedan/hatchback for their next vehicle, compared to 30 per cent who want an SUV.

“Opening the Canadian car market to affordable electric vehicles could be a cost-of-living game changer for many cash-strapped Canadian families,” Kyriazis wrote.

Not only would these 12 sub-$40,000 EVs fill the demand for more affordable electric cars and hatchbacks in Canada, they would certainly also provide a much-needed boost to EV sales and help get us back on track with federal EV sales targets. All Prime Minister Carney’s government has to do is open the door to European-homologated vehicles.

Fiat Grande Panda

Price: $31,118 (Estimated in CDN, before tax)Range: 320 km Automaker country: ItalyParent company: StellantisOpen this photo in gallery:

Fiat Grande PandaOLAF PIGNATARO/Courtesy of manufacturer

Hyundai Inster Long Range

Price: $31,628 (Estimated in CDN, before tax)Range: 369 kmAutomaker country: South KoreaParent company: Hyundai Motor GroupOpen this photo in gallery:

The Hyundai Inster is Mark Richardson’s choice for World Urban Car for 2025.Mark Richardson/The Globe and Mail

Citroën e-C3 Comfort Range 44 kWh

Price: $29,013 (Estimated in CDN, before tax)Range: 320 kmAutomaker country: FranceParent company: StellantisOpen this photo in gallery:

Citroën e-C3 ComfortCourtesy of manufacturer

Citroën e-C3 Aircross Extended Range 54 kWh

Price: $38,215 (Estimated in CDN, before tax)Range: 401 kmAutomaker country: FranceParent company: StellantisOpen this photo in gallery:

Citroën e-C3 AircrossAdrien Cortesi/Courtesy of manufacturer

Citroën e-C4

Price: $39,722 (Estimated in CDN, before tax)Range: 353 kmAutomaker country: FranceParent company: StellantisOpen this photo in gallery:

Citroën e-C4Courtesy of manufacturer

Renault 5 E-Tech 40 kWh

Price: $31,006 (Estimated in CDN, before tax)Range: 308 kmAutomaker country: FranceParent company: Renault Group, part of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi AllianceOpen this photo in gallery:

Renault 5Courtesy of manufacturer

Renault 4 E-Tech 40 kWh

Price: $36,609 (Estimated in CDN, before tax)Range: 300 kmAutomaker country: FranceParent company: Renault Group, part of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi AllianceOpen this photo in gallery:

Renault 4DPPI/Courtesy of manufacturer

Nissan Micra Standard Range 40 kWh

Price: $36,237 (Estimated in CDN, before tax)Range: 319 kmAutomaker country: JapanParent company: Nissan, part of Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi AllianceOpen this photo in gallery:

Nissan MicraCourtesy of manufacturer

Toyota Urban Cruiser 48.8 kWh

Price: $37,344 (Estimated in CDN, before tax)Range: 344 kmAutomaker country: JapanParent company: Toyota Motor Corp.Open this photo in gallery:

Toyota Urban CruiserCourtesy of manufacturer

Suzuki e VITARA 49 kWh 2WD

Price: $39,182 (Estimated in CDN, before tax)Range: 343 kmAutomaker country: JapanParent company: Suzuki Motor Corp.Open this photo in gallery:

Suzuki e VITARACourtesy of manufacturer

Opel Corsa Electric 54 kWh

Price: $39,212 (Estimated in CDN, before tax)Range: 424 kmAutomaker country: GermanyParent company: StellantisOpen this photo in gallery:

Opel Corsa ElectricCourtesy of manufacturer

Opel Frontera Extended Range

Price: $38,838 (Estimated in CDN, before tax)Range: 406 kmAutomaker country: GermanyParent company: StellantisOpen this photo in gallery:

Opel FronteraCourtesy of manufacturer