Europe's tariffs on Chinese electric cars go into effect

From 31 October, the new rates will range from 17.8% to 45.3%. We tell you how they affect brands.

By: Riccardo Ciriaco

Oct 31, 2024 at 5:06am ET

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There is no going back. The European Union is ready for the additional tariffs on imports of Chinese-made electric cars to come into force, amid accusations of industrial 'dumping'; in other words, selling at prices below the real value in order to conquer foreign markets.

The EU implementing regulation was published yesterday (30 October) in the EU's Official Journal. After this step, the new tariffs should enter into force the following day (31 October) and be operational for at least five years.

It should be recalled that they will apply only to 100% electric cars (not to plug-in hybrids or cars with other engines) produced in China by manufacturers of any nationality. Therefore, they also affect many other brands, including European and US brands.

"The adoption of the trade measures," adds the agency Ansa, "does not, however, put an end to the dispute. Contacts between Brussels and Beijing will continue to explore a negotiated solution within the World Trade Organisation, also heeding requests for mediation from some member states such as Germany, which is against the tariffs, and Spain, which abstained in the vote of the 27 in early October".

MG4

BYD Act 3

Tesla Model 3

Tariffs on Chinese electric cars: how much will prices rise?

The tariffs range from 7.8% on Tesla to 35.3% on SAIC (MG) electric vehicles, 17% on BYD and 18.8% on Geely (Volvo, Polestar, smart...), as well as 20.7% on other manufacturers that cooperated with the European Commission during last year's anti-subsidy investigation.

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The new fees must also be added to the previous 10% tax. Thus, the totals range from a minimum of 17.8% to a maximum of 45.3%. Below is a table with a summary of all figures.

Electric car manufacturer	Tax
Tesla	17.8%
BYD	27%
Geely	28.8%
SAIC	45.3%
Other partner manufacturers	30.7%
Other non-cooperating manufacturers	45.3%

What changes for Chinese electric car buyers

It now remains to be seen how the industry and the market will react. Some manufacturers are likely to respond by raising prices of imported cars, to pass on part of the tax to customers, while the other part of the tariffs should stay with the manufacturers. One example is Tesla, which has already revised upwards the list price of the Model 3 saloon (produced at the Shanghai factory).

The tariffs will not be retroactive, but we do not know whether the regulation will also apply to the inventory of vehicles already exported from China to Europe. If not, the increases will not be seen for another month or two, once inventories are depleted.

On the other hand, those who have booked a car produced in China and subject to price increases will be able to cancel their contract. But for more details, we must wait for the next few hours and the official publication of the regulation.