Battery-electric vehicle imports from SAIC, which faces a tariff rate of 35 per cent (plus a 10 per cent base duty), nearly halved between 2023 and 2025. In this case, the desired effect has been achieved. However, manufacturers like BYD, subject to a 17 per cent tariff (plus a 10 per cent base duty), have more than doubled their battery-electric vehicle imports into the EU.
Canada's policy did not form in isolation. The EU and the United States both moved against Chinese EV imports in 2024; their approaches differ sharply in form and severity, which is part of why Canada's 2026 reversal is notable.
European Union — countervailing duties
The EU imposed definitive countervailing duties on battery-electric vehicles from China under Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2754, applicable from October 30, 2024 for five years, after concluding the Chinese BEV value chain benefited from unfair subsidies. The duties are calibrated per manufacturer and apply on top of the standard 10% car import tariff. [1, 2]
| Producer | Countervailing duty | Source |
|---|---|---|
| BYD | 17.0% | [2] |
| Geely | 18.8% | [2] |
| SAIC | 35.3% | [2] |
| Tesla (Shanghai, individual rate) | 7.8% | [2] |
The path is no longer theoretical: on February 10, 2026 the Commission accepted the first price undertaking, from Volkswagen (Anhui) Automotive Company. The company can now export its China-built CUPRA Tavascan into the EU at or above its minimum import price, exempt from the countervailing duty, having also committed to volume limits and EU investment milestones — notably, the first beneficiary is a Western maker's Chinese joint venture rather than a Chinese brand. [4]
United States — Section 301 tariffs
The United States raised its Section 301 tariff on Chinese-made EVs from 25% to 100%, effective September 27, 2024 — a near-prohibitive barrier that, unlike Canada's, remained in place into 2026. [5]
United Kingdom — no special tariff
In contrast to the EU, the US and (until 2026) Canada, the United Kingdom has imposed no special tariff on Chinese-made EVs; in October 2024 the UK government confirmed it had no intention of adopting EU-style duties. [6] With the market left open, Chinese brands led by BYD, Chery and Geely expanded quickly, reaching around 13% of UK new-car registrations by 2025 — roughly double a year earlier. [7]
Australia — open market, Chinese EVs dominant
Australia is the clearest picture of a fully open market: it applies no import limits or special tariffs to Chinese EVs. [8] The result — 77% of all EVs sold in Australia in 2025 were made in China, including many sold under non-Chinese badges, [8] and China has become the third most popular country of origin for new vehicles sold there overall. [9]
Brazil — a pre-announced tariff ramp to 35%
Brazil chose a third path: neither a prohibitive wall nor an open door, but a pre-announced tariff ramp. In November 2023 it ended its zero-tariff regime for EVs and scheduled the import tax to return gradually — 10% (January 2024), 18% (July 2024), 25% (July 2025) and 35% from July 2026 — explicitly to pull manufacturing investment into Brazil. [10, 11]
The ramp is paired with quota-based relief for local assembly: in June 2026, days before the final 35% step, Brazil's foreign-trade chamber (Gecex-Camex) extended reduced tariffs on knocked-down vehicle kits for six more months under a US$463 million quota — beyond it, 35% applies to semi-disassembled kits and 14% to fully disassembled ones. [12]