A three-year delay to the rules of origin tariff on electric vehicles was announced in December. It comes after carmakers on both sides of the Channel warned they were not ready for the change to post-Brexit trade rules planned from January.
The rules were meant to protect the EU car industry, but the 10% tariffs were likely to lead to huge costs resulting in price increases on new vehicles.
Under EU ‘rules of origin’ that were due to come in from January, cars produced in either the EU or UK would need to have been largely made from locally sourced parts to qualify as being tariff free.
The aim was to protect the European industry from cheap imports from countries such as China, which has become a dominant force in the global electric vehicle (EV) market.
The tariffs may now be imposed from 2027
