On 4 October 2023, the European Commission officially opened an anti-subsidy investigation into imports of battery electric vehicles originating in China.
The Commission may publish provisional countervailing duties within 9 months of the initiation of the investigation (i.e. by 4 July at the latest). Definitive measures must be imposed within 4 months of the imposition of provisional duties.
The Commission has just revealed the level of these provisional countervailing duties that it would impose, in addition to the 10% already in effect, on imports of battery electric vehicles (“BEVs”) from China.
If discussions with the Chinese authorities do not result in an effective solution, these provisional countervailing duties will be introduced from 4 July.
+17 to +38% duty on car prices
The individual duties that the Commission would apply to the three Chinese manufacturers included in the sample would be as follows:
– BYD : 17,4 % ;
– Geely : 20 % ;
– SAIC : 38,1 %.
Other manufacturers that cooperated with the investigation but were not included in the sample would be subject to the average duty of 21%.
All other BEV manufacturers in China that did not cooperate with the investigation would be subject to the following residual duty: 38.1%.
A Following a reasoned request, a BEV manufacturer in China – Tesla – could see its individual duty rate recalculated at the final stage.
