EU Revises Extra Tariffs For Chinese Made Electric Cars, Tesla And Others Benefit

Tesla is catching a break in the EU, it seems. The company’s cars imported into the bloc from China are now proposed to get only a 9% additional tariff, which is a big step down from the initially proposed 20.8% when the EU started its investigation into Beijing’s support of its domestic EV industry.

The EU has today also adjusted the proposed extra tariffs for BYD (now 17% from 17.4% initially), Geely (now 19% down from 20%), and SAIC, owner of the MG brand (now at 36.3% down from 38.1%). Other brands will either get 21.3% if they cooperated with the inquiry or 36.3% if they didn’t.

All of these rates are due to be added on top of the 10% duties that Chinese cars imported into the EU are already subject to. The European Commission said no retroactive duties would be imposed (this wasn’t always a given).

As you can tell, Tesla is in a privileged position in the EU if these numbers hold. To justify how different Tesla’s rate is from any other brands, EU officials said the Chinese government appears to provide fewer subsidies to foreign-owned companies. Tesla exports the Model 3 to Europe from Shanghai.

Automakers can now request hearings and offer comments within ten days. The EC will then present a “final determination” to EU member states, who will then proceed to vote on the regulation. The definitive rules will go into effect by early November and will be in force for five years.

• Read More: European Commission Considers Lower Tariffs On Chinese-Made VW And BMW EVs