China's export rules for electric cars in 2026

A licence for every new pure EV

On 26 September 2025, China's Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the General Administration of Customs and the State Administration for Market Regulation issued Announcement No. 54 of 2025. It places pure electric passenger cars under export licence management from 1 January 2026. The goods covered are passenger vehicles fitted only with an electric drive motor and carrying a VIN, under reference customs code 8703801090.

The announcement does not write new qualification rules of its own. Company conditions, the application steps and the issuing of licences follow a 2012 notice on order in car and motorcycle exports. Customs checks the cars against the catalogue of goods that must be inspected at export.

Caixin reported that carmakers and the traders they appoint must hold the licence before a car ships. CnEVPost noted that EVs sold abroad through unofficial channels had drawn complaints about limited software updates and weak service.

Who may export: the 2026 list

The names came in a second step. Announcement No. 85 of 2025, signed on 26 December 2025 by the commerce ministry, the industry ministry and the market regulator and posted on the ministry's site on 21 January 2026, lists the firms eligible to apply for car export licences in 2026. Separate lists in the same announcement cover motorcycles, and off-road two-wheeled motorcycles together with all-terrain vehicles.

The list is set maker by maker and holds for the year 2026. For a new car, the exporter named on the export papers has to be one of the firms listed for that car's maker.

Cloud Auto buys new cars at factory-order prices through licensed exporters in China. The export licence for each new car is therefore issued in the licensed exporter's name.

Why range extenders and plug-in hybrids sit outside No. 54

Announcement No. 54 is defined by the drivetrain: it reaches vehicles whose only drive source is an electric motor. A range-extender car or a plug-in hybrid also carries a petrol engine, so it does not fit that description. CnEVPost's report on the rule likewise speaks of battery electric cars alone.

Falling outside No. 54 does not free a hybrid from export paperwork. Caixin described the change as putting pure EVs under the same export licensing that other vehicles already face. A hybrid that has been registered in China still leaves through the used-car route described next.

Registered cars leave as used cars

A car that has been registered in China and then changes hands counts as a used car for export, even with almost nothing on the odometer. The rules for it are in Announcement No. 6 of 2024 from five ministries, dated 5 February 2024 and in force from 1 March 2024. Only firms that pass a provincial review may export used cars, and each applies for its own licences: another company or a private person may not apply on its behalf.

Licences are issued one per batch, with up to 20 used cars under the same customs code on each, and the count must match the customs declaration. Every car needs an inspection report from a third-party testing body, made to the WM/T 8-2022 standard for passenger cars.

Some cars may not leave at all. The banned list includes cars under mortgage or pledge, cars sealed or seized by the authorities, cars at or within one year of their scrappage limit, and cars whose details differ from the registration certificate. Cars with unsettled traffic violations or accidents are barred as well.

Caixin has written about the trade in 'zero-mileage used cars', new cars exported under the used label. It reported that such cars often reach buyers abroad without service support, and that critics saw the 2026 licence rule as leaving them unaddressed.

The extra document for cars registered within 180 days

A notice of 11 November 2025 from the commerce, industry, public security and customs authorities, No. 648 of 2025, tightened the rule for young used cars. From 1 January 2026, a car whose export application is made within 180 days of registration, the 180th day included, needs a service confirmation from its maker. The maker seals the document, and it names the destination country, the vehicle and the service outlets there.

Without that confirmation, the export licence is refused. The licence filing must also match the registration certificate on brand, model, registration date and the date the car was transferred for export.

The confirmation comes from the maker, not from the seller, so a near-new car bought from a dealer depends on the maker agreeing to issue it. Ask to see the document before paying for any car registered within the last 180 days.

The export VAT refund drops in April 2027

China refunds VAT on exported new energy vehicles. Announcement No. 29 of 2026 from the Ministry of Finance and the State Taxation Administration, published on 12 October 2026, cuts that refund rate from 13% to 9% from 1 April 2027.

The cut covers the 67 commodity codes in the announcement's list of new energy vehicle products. The rate that applies is set by the export date printed on the customs declaration, so the signing date of the sales contract does not decide it. KPMG pointed out that the gap between the VAT charged and the VAT refunded widens from zero to four points, so from that date the exporter carries a larger net tax bill on each car it declares.

What a buyer abroad should check

Ask who the exporter of record is, and whether the car leaves China as new or as used. A new pure EV needs a licence in the name of an exporter on the 2026 list, while a registered car needs a qualified used-car exporter, a batch licence and an inspection report.

Some makers limit the countries their cars may be sold to, so the destination is checked before any quote goes out. Cloud Auto ships to Lebanon today and quotes other countries on request.

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