- From 1 September 2026, China begins a phased excise tax on certain battery products: mercury-free primary batteries, nickel-metal hydride batteries, lithium primary batteries, lithium-ion batteries and vanadium redox flow batteries move to a 2% consumption tax rate, rising to 4% from 1 September 2027.
自2026年9月1日起，中国对部分电池产品分阶段征收消费税：无汞原电池、金属氢化物镍蓄电池、锂原电池、锂离子蓄电池、全钒液流电池按2%税率征收，自2027年9月1日起提高至4%。
- Solar (photovoltaic) cells face a 2% excise rate from 1 April 2027 and 4% from 1 April 2028, giving the PV supply chain a later transition schedule.
光伏电池（太阳能电池）自2027年4月1日起按2%征收消费税，自2028年4月1日起按4%征收，为光伏供应链留出更晚的过渡安排。
- Sodium-ion batteries, solid-state batteries, fuel cells and several advanced PV cell types (perovskite, tandem and gallium arsenide) remain exempt from consumption tax from 1 September 2026 through 31 December 2028.
钠离子电池、固态电池、燃料电池以及钙钛矿、叠层、砷化镓等先进光伏电池，在2026年9月1日至2028年12月31日期间继续免征消费税。
- The reform is anchored in Announcement No. 20 of 2026 issued jointly by the Ministry of Finance, the General Administration of Customs and the State Taxation Administration, published on 17 July 2026.
本次改革以财政部、海关总署、税务总局联合发布的2026年第20号公告为基础，于2026年7月17日对外公布。
- State Taxation Administration Announcement No. 16 of 2026 sets out the administration rules — invoicing with the “battery” category code, deduction ledgers for downstream producers, and exemption documentation requirements — effective 1 September 2026.
国家税务总局2026年第16号公告明确了征管事项——使用”电池”类编码开票、下游连续生产企业的税款抵扣台账、减免税检测报告留存等，自2026年9月1日起施行。
- For foreign-invested battery and EV supply-chain firms, the tax change re-shapes landed cost of components and finished products; the phased schedule and exemptions create planning windows rather than an immediate cliff.
对外资电池及新能源汽车供应链企业而言，此次税改重塑了部件与成品的落地成本；分阶段实施与豁免安排提供了规划窗口而非瞬间断崖。
- Battery excise tax applies at production, commissioned processing and import, mirroring the historic 4% baseline; the 2026 change converts a broad exemption era into targeted, technology-differentiated taxation.
电池消费税在生产、委托加工与进口环节征收，延续历史4%基准税率；2026年调整标志着普惠免税时代结束，转向技术差异化的精细调节。
China’s 2026 Battery Excise Tax Shift: What Foreign Battery and EV Firms Should Plan For | 中国2026年电池消费税新政：外资电池与电动车企业的规划要点
Why this matters now
For more than a decade, most advanced battery categories produced in or imported into China enjoyed a consumption tax exemption designed to nurture the industry. That era ends in stages from September 2026. On 17 July 2026, the Ministry of Finance, the General Administration of Customs and the State Taxation Administration jointly published Announcement No. 20 of 2026 adjusting the consumption tax treatment of specific battery products, and the State Taxation Administration followed with Announcement No. 16 of 2026 covering administrative details. The combined package matters to any foreign-invested enterprise (FIE) that manufactures, imports, assembles or sells batteries, battery packs, energy-storage systems, EVs or solar modules in China, because excise tax attaches to both domestic production and import flows and ripples through the whole supply chain.
What the new rates actually are
Under the new rules, from 1 September 2026 the following products are taxed at 2% at production, commissioned processing and import: mercury-free primary batteries; nickel-metal hydride (Ni-MH) batteries; lithium primary batteries; lithium-ion batteries; and vanadium redox flow batteries. From 1 September 2027 the rate steps up to 4%. Photovoltaic (solar) cells move to 2% from 1 April 2027 and to 4% from 1 April 2028. Importantly, a broad exemption corridor remains: from 1 September 2026 to 31 December 2028, sodium-ion batteries, solid-state batteries, fuel cells, and perovskite, tandem and gallium arsenide solar cells are exempt. Lead-acid batteries, which have been taxed at 4% since January 2016, continue under the existing framework. The announcements also make clear that where the 2015 base rules (Caishui [2015] No. 16 and Caiguan Shui [2015] No. 4) conflict with the new announcement, the new rules prevail.
Why the reform matters commercially
China is the world’s largest producer, consumer and exporter of lithium batteries, and the previous blanket exemption was designed to help the industry scale. With the sector mature, the authorities are shifting from “support everything” to “support the winners and the new technologies”. The differentiated treatment is a deliberate industrial-policy signal: mainstream lithium and nickel technology starts paying tax, while sodium-ion, solid-state, fuel-cell and advanced PV chemistries — the next generation candidates — are deliberately kept tax-free for now. For a foreign company, this affects the tax-inclusive cost base of products sold in China and of imports, the pricing of export-oriented production, and the relative competitiveness of different technology roadmaps. It also interacts with the separately growing cross-border financing and new-energy supply chain tax incentives that foreign investors increasingly layer together.
Administrative requirements to prepare for
Announcement No. 16 of 2026 imposes concrete compliance mechanics. Sellers of battery products must choose the “battery” category code in the goods-and-services tax classification code table when issuing invoices. Downstream producers that buy, or commission-processing firms that import, duty-paid batteries and use them to continuously produce taxable battery products may credit the excise tax already paid, but only through an electronic invoice platform confirmation and a dedicated battery-tax deduction ledger (Battery Tax Deduction Ledger). Invoices and customs excise payment books dated on or after 1 September 2026 support the credit. Firms seeking the exemption must obtain testing reports showing the battery products meet the relevant national standards and keep the reports and itemised lists for inspection. Exemption-category producers must report the relevant amounts in the “current-period exemption detail” schedule of the consumption tax return.
Practical steps for FIEs
- Map product exposure. Classify every battery product your entity produces, imports or uses in continuous production, and identify which rate band — 2% from Sept 2026, 4% from Sept 2027, or the exemption corridor — applies.
- Check invoice and deduction readiness. Verify that your ERP and e-invoice platform can issue “battery” category-code invoices, and set up the Battery Tax Deduction Ledger before the first credit claim.
- Audit import flows. Because excise attaches at import, confirm customs valuation and the excise line item for each battery category; keep customs excise payment vouchers dated after 1 September 2026 for any continuous-production credit.
- Secure exemption documentation. For exempt chemistries, obtain conformity testing reports to national standards, keep itemised product lists aligned with accounting and invoicing, and file the exemption schedule accurately.
- Model the phase-in. Build 2026-2028 cost scenarios under 2% and the 2027-2028 step-ups, and evaluate whether switching some product lines to exempt chemistries changes your landed cost advantage.
- Reassess transfer pricing. With consumption tax now layered into cost of goods, review related-party pricing and documentation so the tax change is consistently reflected in your Chinese entities’ margins.
Risks and compliance notes
The reform is phased but the compliance obligations begin on day one. Missing the category-code invoicing requirement or the deduction ledger can forfeit credits; inaccurate exemption reporting invites penalties. The announced 2028 end-date for the exemption corridor means next-generation chemistries also have a finite window, so long-term supply contracts should build in the expected future tax step-ups. Foreign firms should also remember that the same consumption tax base interacts with VAT, customs duties and transfer-pricing considerations, making this an item to coordinate across tax, customs, finance and legal functions rather than a purely tax-department issue.
中国2026年电池消费税新政：外资电池与电动车企业的规划要点
为什么当下重要
十多年来，在中国境内生产或进口的大多数先进电池品类都享有旨在扶持产业的消费税免征待遇。这一时代自2026年9月起分阶段结束。2026年7月17日，财政部、海关总署、税务总局联合发布2026年第20号公告，调整特定电池产品的消费税政策；国家税务总局随即发布2026年第16号公告明确征管细节。对任何在中国境内生产、进口、组装或销售电池、电池包、储能系统、电动汽车或光伏组件的境外投资企业而言，这套组合都意义重大——因为消费税同时附着于境内生产与进口环节，并沿整条供应链传导。
新税率到底是多少
按照新规，自2026年9月1日起，以下产品在生产、委托加工与进口环节按2%征收消费税：无汞原电池；金属氢化物镍蓄电池（镍氢电池）；锂原电池；锂离子蓄电池；全钒液流电池。自2027年9月1日起税率升至4%。光伏（太阳能）电池自2027年4月1日起按2%征收，自2028年4月1日起按4%征收。重要的是，豁免通道仍然宽阔：2026年9月1日至2028年12月31日期间，钠离子电池、固态电池、燃料电池以及钙钛矿、叠层、砷化镓光伏电池免征消费税。自2016年1月起按4%征税的铅蓄电池，继续适用既有框架。公告同时明确，与2015年基础文件（财税〔2015〕16号、财关税〔2015〕4号）不一致的，以新公告为准。
为什么此次改革具有商业意义
中国是全球锂离子电池最大的生产国、消费国与出口国，此前的普惠免税正是为了帮助产业规模化。随着产业走向成熟，监管部门正从”普惠扶持”转向”扶优汰劣、支持新技术”。差异化对待是一个明确的产业政策信号：主流锂电与镍电开始纳税，而钠离子、固态、燃料电池以及先进光伏化学体系——即下一代候选技术——当前被有意保持在免税状态。对外资企业而言，这会影响其在中国销售产品与进口产品的含税成本基数、出口型生产的定价，以及不同技术路线的相对竞争力；同时也会与外资投资者日益叠加的跨境融资与新能源供应链税收激励形成互动。
需要提前准备的征管要求
2026年第16号公告提出了具体合规机制。销售电池产品的纳税人须在商品和服务税收分类编码表中选择”电池”类编码开具发票。下游企业购进、或委托加工收回、或以自营、委托方式进口已纳消费税电池并用于连续生产应税电池产品的，可以凭通过电子发票服务平台勾选确认的增值税专用发票、税收缴款书、海关进口消费税专用缴款书计算扣除原料已纳消费税，并须建立《电池税款抵扣台账》。开票日期在2026年9月1日及以后的发票与海关消费税缴款书方可支撑抵扣。申请减免税的企业须取得所涉电池产品符合相应国家标准的检测报告并留存备查。享受减免税的电池产品生产商须在消费税申报表的”本期减（免）税额明细表”中如实填报。
外资企业的操作步骤
- 梳理产品敞口。 对本实体生产、进口或连续生产使用的每一种电池产品分类，确认适用哪个税率档——2026年9月起2%、2027年9月起4%、还是豁免通道。
- 核对开票与抵扣就绪度。 确认ERP与电子发票平台能够开具”电池”类编码发票，并在首次抵扣申报前建立《电池税款抵扣台账》。
- 审计进口流程。 由于消费税在进口环节征收，请核对各电池类别的海关完税价格与消费税栏项；为连续生产抵扣，保留2026年9月1日之后的进口消费税缴款凭证。
- 落实豁免凭证。 对免税化学体系，取得符合国家标准的检测报告，留存与会计及开票一致的明细清单，并准确填报减免税申报表。
- 模拟分阶段影响。 按2%及2027-2028年阶梯税率构建2026-2028年成本情景，评估部分产品线切换至免税化学体系是否会改变落地成本优势。
- 重估转让定价。 随着消费税计入营业成本，复核关联交易定价与文档，确保税改在中国实体利润率中得到一致反映。
风险与合规提示
改革是分阶段的，但合规义务从第一天就生效。未按要求使用”电池”类编码开票或未建立抵扣台账，可能丧失抵扣；减免税申报不实将招致处罚。公告公布的2028年豁免截止日期意味着下一代化学体系同样只有有限窗口，长期供货合同应预留未来税率上调空间。外资企业还应记住，同一消费税税基会与增值税、关税及转让定价考量相互作用，因此此事应由税务、关务、财务与法务部门协同处理，而非纯税务部门事项。
Sources
- 国家税务总局湖南省税务局《消费税费类（2026年7月热点）》：援引《财政部 海关总署 税务总局关于调整部分电池消费税政策的公告》（2026年第20号）核心条款：<https://hunan.chinatax.gov.cn/wap/show/20260813322047>
- 国家税务总局北京市税务局转载《国家税务总局关于电池消费税征收管理有关事项的公告》（国家税务总局公告2026年第16号，2026-09-01施行）：<http://beijing.chinatax.gov.cn/bjswj/c104800/202608/e71b3d3e36ab49248837d6a40a423f44.shtml>
- 青海省同德县人民政府官网《关于〈国家税务总局关于电池消费税征收管理有关事项的公告〉的解读》（含连续生产抵扣台账、进口缴款书抵扣等问答）：<https://www.tongde.gov.cn/zwgk/fdzdgknr/zfxxgkml/swxxgk/content_400018650>
- 国家税务总局税收法规库《财政部 海关总署 税务总局关于调整部分电池消费税政策的公告》（财政部 海关总署 税务总局公告2026年第20号）全文：<https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c102416/c5251171/content.html>