Latest news, updates, and insights from the China EV Mart team.
A Zeekr 007 lands at $52,569 vs the BYD Seal's $44,413 in Germany — a $4,870 ex-factory gap becomes $8,155 landed. In Qatar it's $5,114. One tax story.
Importing a Chinese EV to Ireland stacks the EU's full trade-defence regime: 10% MFN duty, then a brand-specific countervailing duty (BYD 17%, Geely 18.8%, SAIC 35.3%, others 20.7%), then 23% VAT — a BYD Seal lands at about $45,384 (+83.8%), roughly $6,544 above the same car in the UK. One more bill waits at registration: Ireland's CO2-banded VRT, currently zeroed for most EVs by a relief of up to €5,000 that expires on 31 December 2026 and is already gone above €50,000. Here is the full stack, model by model.
Importing a Chinese EV to Israel means a 7% customs duty, no EU countervailing duty and 18% VAT — a BYD Seal lands at about $36,023 (+45.9%), some $8,400 cheaper at the border than the same car in Germany. The layer our model excludes is the one that rules Israeli pricing: a 48% EV purchase tax (down from a proposed 52%, far below the up-to-83% gasoline rate), with the next formula signalled for January 2027. Here is the full stack, model by model.
Importing a Chinese EV to Italy stacks the EU's 10% duty with a brand-specific countervailing duty (BYD 17%, Geely 18.8%, SAIC/MG 35.3%, most others 20.7%) and 22% VAT — the highest VAT of the EU's four largest car markets. A BYD Seal lands at about $45,117 (+82.7%) in our 30-market records; a Leapmotor T03 at $20,021. Italy is also Stellantis's home market, which makes the import story unusual: the country's best-selling EV is distributed by Stellantis itself, and BYD has been in talks about underused Italian plants.
Importing a Chinese EV to Malaysia stacks a 5% ACFTA import duty and a 10% sales tax — a $24,690 BYD Seal lands at $33,167 (+34.3%). But since 2026 the binding rule is the route: CBU imports face a RM200,000 minimum CIF value and a 180 kW minimum, while locally assembled EVs keep full exemptions until end-2027.
Importing a Chinese EV to New Zealand means 0% import duty and no countervailing duty — but 15% GST, and since 1 April 2024 light EVs also pay road user charges of NZ$76 per 1,000 km. A BYD Seal lands at about $33,766.5 (+36.8%). Here is the full tax stack, the RHD filter, and the used-import question.