China Pushes Back on New EU Registration Requirement for EV Imports

China said it has “expressed great concern” with the EU over a decision by the bloc earlier this month to begin customs registration for Chinese electric vehicle imports, setting them up to face retroactive tariffs if an ongoing EU investigation concludes they benefited from unfair subsidies.

The new registration requirement “adds burdens to normal trade,” a Chinese Commerce Ministry spokesperson said during a March 14 news conference, according to an unofficial translation of a transcript. The spokesperson said China hopes to resolve any differences “through dialogue and consultation,” adding that it will “pay close attention to the EU's follow-up actions and firmly safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies.”

The EU announcement came after the bloc in October launched a countervailing duty investigation on electric vehicle batteries from China (see 2310040012). In a document published in the Official Journal on March 5 and effective March 7, the EU said it found “sufficient evidence” that Chinese EVs are being subsidized, and the European Commission “deemed it necessary to prepare the potential retroactive imposition of measures” by requiring registration of Chinese EV imports.

If the commission finds that “the domestic industry suffers material injury at the end of the current investigation,” it will begin collecting CVD on the registered imports, the document said. The document also said the EU investigation is still ongoing and that it’s "not yet possible to accurately estimate the amount of subsidisation.”