By Timothy S. Donahue
Top Takeaways:
- China’s Finance Ministry and State Taxation Administration will cancel VAT export rebates on listed products starting April 1, 2026.
- The official product list includes code 2404120000 for non-combustible nicotine inhalation products without tobacco.
- Battery export rebate rates will drop from 9% to 6% through 2026, then end starting Jan. 1, 2027 for listed items.
China will cancel value-added tax (VAT) export rebates for a product category that includes e-cigarettes, effective April 1, 2026, according to a joint notice from the Ministry of Finance and the State Taxation Administration.
In Announcement No. 2 of 2026, dated Jan. 8, the agencies said China will cancel VAT export rebates for “photovoltaic and other products” starting April 1, with the affected items listed in an attached product schedule.
That product list includes customs code 2404120000, described as: “products for inhalation without combustion, containing nicotine, not containing tobacco or reconstituted tobacco.”
The same announcement also adjusts the export rebate policy for certain battery products. According to the notice, it reduces the VAT export rebate rate for listed battery products from 9% to 6% from April 1 to Dec. 31, 2026, and cancels VAT export rebates for those products starting Jan. 1, 2027.
For products in the announcement that are subject to consumption tax, China said its export consumption tax policy will remain unchanged and will continue to apply existing refund or exemption rules.
The policy was publicly reported on Jan. 9 by state-linked and financial media outlets and was also referenced in international reporting on the rebate changes.
