China will eliminate value-added tax (VAT) export rebates for photovoltaic products from April 1, 2026, according to a joint notice released on Jan. 9 by the Ministry of Finance of the People’s Republic of China and the State Taxation Administration.
Under the policy adjustment, VAT export rebates for solar products will be fully removed from April 1, 2026. For battery products, the export rebate rate will be cut from 9% to 6% between April 1 and Dec. 31, 2026, before being eliminated entirely from Jan. 1, 2027.
The published product lists indicate that the solar category covers monocrystalline silicon wafers with diameters above 15.24 cm, both above and below 220 micrometers in thickness, which are doped for electronic industry use. Industry sources note that most mainstream PV wafers currently produced fall within this definition. The list also includes unassembled solar cells and finished photovoltaic modules.
The battery category extends beyond lithium-ion batteries and battery packs to include other energy storage technologies, such as all-vanadium redox flow batteries. It also encompasses key upstream materials used in lithium-based batteries, including lithium hexafluorophosphate, lithium manganate, lithium cobalt oxide, and lithium nickel cobalt manganese oxides.
This marks the second major adjustment to China’s export rebate regime for solar and battery products in just over a year. In the previous round, announced on Nov. 15, 2024, and implemented from Dec. 1, 2024, export rebate rates for selected refined oil products, solar equipment, batteries, and certain non-metallic mineral products were reduced from 13% to 9%.
Market analysts say the latest move will materially increase export costs for Chinese PV and battery manufacturers. However, with a roughly three-month transition period before the new policy takes effect, some expect a surge in outbound shipments in the first quarter of 2026 as companies accelerate exports ahead of the deadline.
Over the longer term, analysts argue that the rollback of export tax incentives is likely to reinforce China’s broader industrial policy objectives, encouraging consolidation, technological upgrading, and a shift toward higher-value, more sustainable manufacturing rather than volume-driven export growth.
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