Electric scooters now have a globally unified "ID card" (picture)

The picture shows customs officers conducting policy presentations at electric scooter companies. Photo by Li Xiaohui

Recently, the official website of the World Customs Organization (WCO) released the 2028 version of the Harmonized System of Trade Names and Codes (Revised) (referred to as the "Harmonized System"). The sub item "Electric Scooters" proposed by Hangzhou Customs to be added to the Harmonized System (HS code: 8711.62) has been successfully included and will come into effect on January 1, 2028. Electric scooters now have a dedicated "ID card", which not only solves the classification dispute of the product, opens the door to convenient customs clearance for relevant export enterprises in China, but also lays a solid foundation for expanding the international market.

The 'standard language' for international trade commodity classification in the Harmonized System. At present, more than 200 countries and regions around the world use their own customs tariffs and international trade statistics, and over 98% of goods in international trade are classified according to this standard. Therefore, it is not only the universal economic language of commodities, but also an indispensable tool for international trade.

Electric scooters, as a new type of green energy transportation tool, are becoming increasingly popular among the public. In recent years, the export scale of China's electric scooter industry has continued to climb, with Zhejiang Province exporting over 3.95 million electric scooters by 2025. As an emerging commodity, there were differences in the classification and recognition of electric scooters in different countries. Different classifications and recognition correspond to different tax rates. Some share tax numbers with electric motorcycles, electric scooters, and other goods, while others use tax numbers for sports equipment or toys. Now that electric scooters have independent tax numbers, it paves the way for China to expand its international market for such products, "said Chen Lan, a commodity classification expert at Hangzhou Customs.

As a major producer and exporter of electric scooters globally, China's customs have promoted the revision of WCO rules and standards, which not only provides clearer customs clearance rules for Chinese export enterprises, reduces trade compliance costs, but also enhances the international competitiveness of domestic advantageous industries. It is also a long-term strategy to lead the standardization, internationalization, and high-quality development of emerging industries through rule docking. ”Chen Xiangyang, President of the Zhejiang Leisure Car Industry Association, said.

Lin Yuhang, the general manager of Zhejiang Mihang Technology Co., Ltd., stated that by 2025, the company will export approximately 150000 electric scooters. A single tax number will significantly reduce classification disputes and declaration errors, increase customs clearance efficiency by more than 30%, and reduce logistics costs by 15% -20%. In addition, when facing anti-dumping and anti subsidy investigations, an independent tax number makes the investigation and target identification more accurate, which is conducive to effective litigation and rights protection for enterprises.