UK weighs Chinese EV tariffs of up to 45%: what it means for prices

The UK government is reportedly drawing up options for import tariffs of up to 45% on Chinese-built electric cars, according to a Times report on 4 October that electrive picked up on 5 October. That would be a steep rise from the standard 10% duty these cars pay today, and it would land on brands that took about 23% of UK new car registrations in September. Nothing has been decided, and the government has not confirmed the plan. Newer entrants are covered too, such as in our Nio Firefly UK launch report.

Britain has so far chosen not to copy the EU, which has charged extra anti-subsidy duties on Chinese-built EVs since October 2024. The UK applies only its ordinary 10% duty with no extra surcharge, as Selectra points out, and that has made Britain an open market for brands such as BYD, MG, Omoda and Jaecoo. The question now is whether pressure from Brussels changes that.

What has the government actually said?

Very little on the record. According to The Times, as reported by Car Dealer Magazine, the paper names Jonathan Reynolds as drawing up options for import duties over concerns that state-subsidised Chinese cars are being “dumped” in the British market. The paper said ministers were ready to match the EU’s 45% levy, according to The Standard.

The official line is more guarded. A government spokesperson said: “We always put trade measures in place independently and based only on the UK’s economic interests and those of industry.” No rate, start date or list of affected models has been published, and and no tariff has been introduced, as AsiaOne noted.

The story did not come from nowhere. Reports that the UK was reviewing Chinese EV tariffs alongside trade talks with the EU were already circulating on 28 September, according to FuelCellsWorks.

How would UK tariffs compare with the EU’s?

The EU charges the same 10% standard duty as the UK, then adds a countervailing duty that varies by manufacturer. Those extra duties run from 7.8% to 35.3%, giving combined rates of 17.8% to 45.3%, according to The Star. The “45%” in the UK reports is the top of that range.

Market	Duty on a China-built electric car	Status
UK today	10% standard import duty, no extra surcharge	In force
EU	10% plus 7.8% to 35.3% (17.8% to 45.3% combined, by maker)	In force since October 2024
UK, reported option	Up to 45%	Under consideration, not decided

The EU’s extra duties apply to battery-electric cars, not hybrids, and Brussels is now threatening action on Chinese plug-in hybrids too, as we explain in our report on the EU’s hybrid tariff threat. A UK scheme modelled on the EU’s would face the same question about where to draw the line.

Why is the EU’s “Made in Europe” plan part of this?

This looks like the real driver. Brussels has told London that Britain would need to raise tariffs on Chinese cars and align more closely with EU trade policy if it wants to avoid “Made in Europe” barriers that would hit key exports, according to FleetPoint. Those proposed rules would favour goods produced within the EU in subsidies, tax incentives and public procurement, The Star reports. The EU’s fear is that Chinese carmakers could use the UK as a route into its market.

For ministers, it is a choice between two export risks. UK officials reportedly weighed the chance of Chinese retaliation against Jaguar Land Rover, but concluded that being shut out of the Made in Europe framework would do far more economic damage, according to the Times report covered by Car Dealer Magazine. Our guide to British-built electric cars shows which EVs the UK’s own factories make.

Which electric cars could cost more?

A tariff follows where a car is built, not the badge on the bonnet. That puts imported models from Chinese brands such as BYD, MG, Omoda and Jaecoo in the frame. Those brands are now mainstream: Chinese makes topped 25% of UK registrations in September on one count, according to Eletric-Vehicles.com, while the count we use in our analysis of the September figures puts them at 23.3%.

There are two caveats. First, those brand totals include petrol, hybrid and plug-in hybrid cars, which a tariff aimed at EVs would not touch unless its scope were widened. Second, Western brands that build cars in China would be caught too: Tesla, for example, exports cars from its Shanghai factory. Equally, a Chinese brand’s car built outside China would not be affected.

For a sense of what is at stake, Selectra lists the MG4 Urban from £23,495 and the BYD Seal saloon from £45,730 with 354 miles of WLTP range. China-built cars already miss out on the Electric Car Grant, so there is no government discount to soften any rise.

What would a 45% tariff add?

Not a straight 45%. Duty is charged on a car’s value when it is imported, not on the showroom price you pay, and makers do not publish those import values. As an illustration, every £10,000 of import value attracts £1,000 of duty at today’s 10% rate. At 45%, that becomes £4,500, an extra £3,500 for the importer to absorb or pass on. The wider the gap between a car’s import value and its showroom price, the smaller the percentage rise you would see at the dealer.

Would prices rise straight away?

Not necessarily, and probably not by the full amount. Chinese brands have already shown they will spend their own money to stay competitive: with China-built cars shut out of the grant, several now fund their own discounts in its place. A tariff would squeeze the margin that pays for offers like these.

Makers would have three broad choices: absorb some of the cost, raise prices, or supply the UK from factories outside China. Which they pick would depend on the final rate, and for now there is no rate. What a tariff would almost certainly do is erode the advantage that, according to Selectra, UK buyers have enjoyed over drivers on the Continent, where Chinese EVs already carry the EU’s duties.

What this means for you

Nothing changes today. Chinese-built EVs still pay the 10% standard duty, there is no announced rate or start date, and the government’s public position is that it will decide on UK interests alone. We would not rush into an order purely because of a newspaper report.

The direction of travel still matters if you are already shopping. A tariff, if one comes, can only push the cost of China-built cars up, and maker-funded discounts are commercial decisions that can be cut at short notice. If you have found a China-built EV you like at a good price, there is no tariff-related reason to wait for it to get cheaper. If you are still choosing, compare it against rivals on the Electric Car Grant eligible list after their grant, and read our guide to the Chinese EV brands on sale in the UK for how they compare.