A Review of 2026 EU Rules of Origin for Bicycles and E-Bikes

When European Union (EU) based brands produce their bicycles and e-bikes within the EU or import them from outside the EU, there are specific Rules of Origin (ROO) depending on the country of manufacture. These Rules of Origin are designated by the European Commission, specifically the Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union (DG TAXUD) and is enforced by the national customs authorities in each EU member country. On top of this, the countries where the bicycles and e-bikes are produced may also have their own Rules of Origin that determine if product qualify for a Certificate of Origin.

Regional Value Content (RVC) is the term used to determine how much of a bike’s value comes from a specific country or trading bloc. It requires that a certain percentage of a product's value be added within the trading bloc, calculated as: (Ex-works Price − Non-originating materials) ÷ Ex-works Price × 100.

Here are the specific rule types:

Anti-Circumvention:

Under Anti-Circumvention rules, bicycles and e-bikes that use parts sourced from China are specifically targeted in that non-EU content must be less than 60 percent of the total value of the parts in accordance to Article 13(2) of the EU Basic Anti-Dumping Regulation. (Value of Chinese Parts ÷ Total Value of All Parts) × 100 = Must be < 60%.

If the parts originating from China constitute 60 percent or more of the total value of the parts used in the assembly, then it will be subject to anti-dumping duties. The exception to this is if the value added to the parts during assembly exceeds 25 percent of the total manufacturing cost.

It is important to note that the following components will automatically incur anti-dumping duties:

1.     Painted or anodized or polished and/or lacquered bicycle frames (CN 87149110)

2.     Painted or anodized or polished and/or lacquered bicycle front forks (CN 87149130)

3.     Derailleur gears (CN 87149950)

4.     Cranksets and gear (CN 87149630)

5.     Free-wheel sprocket-wheels (CN 87149390)

6.     Brakes (besides coaster brakes and hub brakes) (CN 87149430)

7.     Brake levers (CN 87149490)

8.     Complete wheels with or without tubes, tires and sprockets (CN 87149990)

9.     Handlebars (CN87149910) regardless if it has a stem, brakes and/or shifters attached.

Non-Preferential:

The value of all non-originating materials must be less than 70 percent of the Ex-Works price of the product. (Value of Non-EU Parts ÷ Ex-Works Price) × 100 = Must be ≤ 70%.

What is meant by Non-Preferential Countries, is that these countries do not receive preferential duties and tariffs from the European Union. Major bike industry producers like Taiwan fit under this category. This means that there are no current existing schemes like Free Trade Agreements, Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), Least Developed Countries (LDC), Everything but Arms (EBA) programs. The trade conducted between these countries and the EU follow what is known as standard World Trade Organization (WTO) Most-Favored-Nation (MFN) duty tax, which is a non-discriminatory baseline rate applied to imports from WTO member states guaranteeing equal treatment. However, the EU can still implement anti-dumping duties and anti-subsidy duties on any non-preferential country (such as China for example).

Preferential:

What is meant by EU Preferential Countries means that these countries have a current Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the European Union or have been designated as a Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) if deemed as a developing country, or designated as a Least Developed Country (LDC) for the Everything but Arms (EBA) program.

For preferential countries, there are specific percentages defined for each rule to prevent circumvention. For FTAs the standard is 50 percent, meaning that non-originating materials must be less than 50 percent of the Ex Works-price of the product. Additional rules may also apply, for example the EU-Vietnam FTA has specific requirements for high-value parts. For GSPs, LDCs, and EBAs, non-originating materials must be less than 70 percent of the Ex Works-price of the product.

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