Tesla has overhauled its referral system in the US, removing incentives for new vehicle purchases and replacing them with rewards tied to Full Self-Driving (Supervised). Under the new program, existing Tesla owners who share a referral link give an eligible recipient a one-month trial of FSD. If that person converts into a paid subscriber, the referrer receives either one free month of FSD or a $99 Tesla Credit, matching the monthly subscription cost. [1][2]
To qualify as a referrer, owners must either subscribe to FSD or have purchased the package outright before Tesla ended standalone sales, and they must access the link using Tesla app version 4.62.0 or later. Owners using a one-year FSD grant are excluded. Invitees must already own a registered Tesla with compatible hardware, must not own FSD outright, and cannot have paid for an FSD subscription or completed a new-car trial within the past 12 months. Tesla caps referral earnings at 12 rewards per calendar year, allowing participants to earn up to 12 free months or $1,188 in credits, which expire after 12 months and cannot be redeemed for cash. [1][2]
The change marks a notable pivot away from Tesla's historical strategy of using referral perks to drive vehicle deliveries, with car purchases no longer qualifying for buyer or referrer rewards. Instead, the initiative targets the existing fleet to grow paid software adoption. Tesla reported 1.74 million active FSD subscriptions in its third-quarter shareholder letter, a key performance metric linked to Elon Musk's 2025 CEO Performance Award target of 10 million subscriptions. [2]
