The government of Uzbekistan has approved a significant increase in the recycling fee for electric vehicles (HS Code 8703 80). This is stated in the resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers dated January 31.
The commodity nomenclature for foreign economic activity 8703 80 includes vehicles powered solely by electric motors. Thus, this does not apply to hybrid cars.
The amount of the recycling fee for electric cars varies based on their year of manufacture:
- if less than three years old — 120 BRV (45 million soms);
- if more than three years old — 210 BRV (78.75 million soms).
The Ministry of Economy and Finance, in collaboration with the Ministry of Investments, Industry, and Trade, has been tasked with developing a procedure for collecting and "efficiently using" the recycling fee within two months. The Vice Prime Minister Jamshid Khojaev has been appointed responsible for implementing this directive.
The increased recycling fees for electric vehicles will take effect on May 1, 2025.
Since August 1, 2020, the government of Uzbekistan has introduced a recycling fee on certain vehicles. The recycling fee for electric vehicles manufactured less than three years ago was set at 30 BRV (a fourfold increase), and for those older than three years, it was 90 BRV (a 2.3-fold increase).
In October 2024, Spot reported that starting in 2025, Uzbekistan plans to introduce a recycling fee for electric vehicle batteries. The tax was intended to be levied on importers and local manufacturers. For passenger cars, the recycling fee was supposed to range from 5,000 to 10,000 soms.
Electric Vehicles in Uzbekistan
Until January 1, 2030, electric vehicles and hybrids produced in the republic are exempt from recycling fees and customs duties on imported components (kits), raw materials and materials, equipment, and technological tooling.
Manufacturers are also permitted, until they fully master the production cycle of electric vehicles and hybrids (but not exceeding 24 months from the date of implementation), to import kits for large-scale assembly (SKD) or in ready-made form (CBU) without paying duties and recycling fees, up to 50% of the organized production capacity, but no more than 10,000 units per year.
Last year, the import of electric vehicles and hybrids in Uzbekistan surpassed gasoline cars for the first time in history. The share of internal combustion engine vehicles in imports fell from 64.4% to 44.2%. Meanwhile, the share of electric vehicles in supplies rose from 20% to 32.3%, and hybrids from 15.3% to 23.4%.
According to the Statistics Agency, Uzbekistan imported 22,220 electric vehicles worth $215.3 million in the first 11 months of 2024. Of these, 99.5% of all imports came from China. Following with a significant lag are Kazakhstan, Hong Kong, and Germany (a total of fewer than 100 units).
Additionally, last year, the BYD Uzbekistan Factory, which launched a plant in the Jizzakh region in June, accounted for 4.3% of all car sales. BYD sold just over 17,000 electric vehicles.
In July, ADM Jizzakh, which plans to produce hybrids starting in 2026, proposed reinstating tariffs on the import of electric vehicles. The general director of the automobile factory, Daniyar Davletiyarov, explained that producing electric cars in Uzbekistan is not feasible. His proposal was "100% supported" by the chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Davron Vakhabov.
Previously, Spot reported that in 2024, Uzbekistan imported passenger cars worth nearly $1.3 billion.