According to a statement posted on China’s Ministry of Finance website on 9 January, the Ministry of Finance and the Taxation Administration have issued an announcement on the adjustment of export rebate policies for solar PV products and other items.
The PV products covered by this adjustment include wafers, cells and modules; and related raw materials including conductive glass, quartz products and fused quartz, among others.
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The adjustments regarding the export rebate policies for PV products and other items are as follows:
- Starting 1 April 2026, the value-added tax (VAT) export rebate for PV products and other items will be removed. The specific list of products is set out in a separate document.
- From 1 April 2026 to 31 December 2026, the VAT export rebate rate for battery products will be reduced from 9% to 6%; starting January 1, 2027, the rebate will be eliminated. The specific list of products is set out in another document.
- For those products mentioned above that are subject to consumption tax, the export consumption tax policy will remain unchanged, and the consumption tax rebate, or exemption, policy will continue to apply.
- The export rebate rate applicable to the products listed in this announcement shall be determined based on the export date declared on the customs declaration form.
Market intelligence provider TrendForce indicates that the cancellation of tax rebates will directly breach the cost threshold for low-margin companies. This will accelerate the exit of inefficient capacity that relies on such subsidies to sustain cutthroat competition, thereby benefiting leading companies capable of commanding premium pricing.
Meanwhile, prior to the policy’s implementation in April 2026, the industry is likely to see an export rush, putting severe strain on maritime shipping. This will force domestic companies to renegotiate prices with overseas clients to pass on costs.
TrendForce further pointed out that in the long run, this marks a transition for China’s new energy industry from “mere product exports” to “localised global production.” It will compel companies to accelerate capacity deployment in Europe, the Middle East and North America to hedge against rising domestic export costs.
This week has seen several new developments for the solar industry in China, including the introduction of stronger policy measures for intellectual property (IP) protection for the country’s solar PV industry and warnings of monopoly risks in the polysilicon sector.
