Australians are buying electric vehicles in record numbers, putting more than 410,000 on the nation's roads, but experts warn more purchases and policy changes will be needed to meet climate targets.

Those changes could include a ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles within a decade, similar to those issued in the United Kingdom and Europe.

The Electric Vehicle Council released the findings in an annual report into the industry on Tuesday, revealing electric car purchases had risen by 24 per cent over the past year.

Electric charging infrastructure had also grown by 20 per cent, according to the report, and legal changes had helped to make more electric and plug-in hybrid models available in Australia.

But the news comes after the federal government revealed a 2035 emissions reduction target that would require significantly faster adoption of electric transport, with estimates indicating EVs would need to make up half of all new cars sold.

The State of EVs 2025 report found Australian motorists purchased 72,758 electric cars in the first six months of the year, making up 12.1 per cent of all new vehicles sold - a significant jump from 2024 when electric cars made up 9.1 per cent of sales.

Tesla's electric SUV, the Model Y, topped the list of most popular low-emission vehicles during the period, followed by BYD's plug-in hybrid electric ute, the Shark 6.

Almost 100 electric models were on sale in Australia during the year, as well as 59 plug-in hybrid varieties, which Electric Vehicle Council chief executive Julie Delvecchio said had been boosted by the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard.

Further legal and policy changes would be needed to ensure more Australians moved to electric vehicles, she said, and the nation met its emissions goal.

"We're calling on the government to set EV targets and a date for a ban on petrol and diesel registrations, like the UK and France," Ms Delvecchio said.

"We're also calling for more incentives to get Australians behind the wheel of electric cars and trucks, including GST exemptions and energy bill credits."

In January, the UK government announced plans to phase out the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030, and require all new cars and vans to be zero-emission models by 2035.

But Australia does not have a similar target, and state and territory governments have removed financial support for EV purchases over the past two years.

The council's report ranked the federal government's efforts to support EV adoption highest, with a score of eight out of 10, but ranked the Queensland, Tasmanian and Northern Territory governments lowest, with just three out of 10.

No nation had achieved mass EV adoption without ongoing government support, Ms Delvecchio said, and withdrawing it could stall progress.

"We're making inroads in EV uptake as a nation but the road ahead is steep," she said.

"We need to shift gears from steady to more rapid growth in EV uptake to meet emissions reductions targets."

The federal government announced a plan to reduce emissions by 62 to 70 per cent by 2035, which the Climate Change Authority said would require a half of light vehicles sold to be electric models.

Ban on petrol, diesel vehicles urged as EVs set records