Turkey announced that it will impose an additional 40 percent tax on all cars coming from China. While the additional taxation had a great repercussion on social media, a similar step came from the European Union. The EU will impose a customs duty of up to 38 percent on Chinese electric vehicles.

EU to impose additional tax on Chinese electric cars

Trade tensions between China and the European Union have finally started to be reflected as taxes. Within the scope of the decision taken in the European Union, it was stated that temporary import duties of up to 38 percent will be applied to electric vehicles of Chinese automakers.

The European Commission found that BYD, Geely and SAIC received unfair subsidies from the Chinese government. Accordingly, BYD will face additional import duties of 17.4 percent, Geely 20 percent and SAIC 38.1 percent.

This move actually follows the additional tariffs imposed by both the US and Turkey on Chinese cars. The US quadrupled its tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles as part of a recent decision.

China’s Ministry of Commerce said it would closely monitor the EU’s steps and take necessary measures to defend the rights of Chinese companies. The tariffs also reflect disputes over events in Taiwan, human rights and economic cooperation.

The European Commission also announced that Chinese carmakers that cooperate with the investigation will face tariffs of 21 percent, while non-cooperative firms will face tariffs of 38 percent. Manufacturers exporting electric vehicles from China, such as Tesla and BMW, will also be included in this taxation.