China proposes CO2 emission limits for light-duty vehicles
11 November 2026
China has issued draft amendments to its national light vehicle efficiency standards—GB 20997-2024 (Limits and evaluation targets of fuel consumption for light-duty commercial vehicles) and GB 27999-2025 (Evaluation methods and targets of fuel consumption for passenger cars) [6892][6893]. The proposed changes would transition these standards from using a single fuel consumption metric to one also incorporating CO2 emission targets.
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For both standards, a Dual Compliance Framework is proposed. Beginning in 2026, manufacturers will have a parallel compliance pathway, fulfilling requirements if they meet either fleet fuel consumption targets or fleet CO2 emission targets.
Additional changes for light commercial vehicles include:
- Phase-Out of Electrified Vehicle Loopholes: The drafts remove previous exemptions that treated electric driving as zero emissions for PHEVs and BEVs through 2030. In the proposal, calculations would follow simple conversion methods to determine the equivalent fuel consumption or CO2 emissions or electric driving. Hydrogen-fueled driving for FCEVs will continue to be treated as zero emissions through 2030.
- Removal of Multipliers: Special weighting multipliers for NEVs and "energy-saving vehicles" that were previously applied to increase their weighting in corporate average calculations prior to 2030 would be stripped away.
- Stricter LCV 2029 Fleet Targets: For light commercial vehicles, the mandatory compliance ratio for fleet targets in 2029 would be tightened from 115% to 110% of the 2030 target, forcing manufacturers to accelerate fleet-wide efficiency.
The proposed implementation date for both amendments is January 1, 2028.
Changes to the labeling requirements for the high and low-temperature driving range information of battery electric passenger vehicles, GB 22757.2-2023, have also been proposed to require labels to be based on measured values only.
Source: CEEC Customs Information Center