Chinese cars in Norway: which brands sell there and since when
Facts checked
Norway is Europe's exception. It is not an EU member, it has not applied the EU's anti-subsidy duties, and the government has said tariffs on Chinese electric cars are neither relevant nor desirable. Combined with a market in which about 95% of new cars are electric, that has made Norway the natural first stop for Chinese brands entering Europe: Xpeng delivered its first cars outside China here at the end of 2020, Nio chose Norway as its first overseas market in 2021, BYD landed its first hundred Tang SUVs in August 2021, and FAW's Hongqi began deliveries in January 2022 through the importer Motor Gruppen.
The volumes have followed. 2025 was Norway's best year on record, with 179,549 new passenger cars registered. Chinese-origin cars took 24,524 of them, a 13.7% share, up from 10.4% in 2024, and reached 17% in December against 7.7% a year earlier. BYD finished tenth on the overall brand list, carried by the Sealion 7, and Xpeng more than doubled to 4,466. Volume is concentrated: BYD, MG and Xpeng account for most of it, while the other eleven or so Chinese brands in the market sell in small numbers.
The incentives that built this market are being withdrawn on a published schedule. The VAT exemption on electric cars, which applied up to NOK 500,000, fell to NOK 300,000 from the start of 2026, is set to fall to NOK 150,000 in 2027 and is to be fully phased out in 2028, with the registration tax on combustion cars raised to preserve the gap.
At a glance
| Country code | NO |
|---|---|
| Region | Europe |
| Market status | Open |
| Brands recorded | 16 |
| Chinese-owned plants | 0 |
| Models on this site | 17 |
Brands sold in Norway
| Brand | Status | Since | Route to market | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 小鹏Xpeng | Sold | December 2020 | An independent importer | Norway was Xpeng's first market outside China; G3 deliveries began at the end of 2020. 4,466 registrations in 2025, more than double 2024. |
| 蔚来NIO | Sold | 2021 | The company itself | Norway was Nio's first overseas market, with its first European battery-swap station installed in November 2021. Nio has indicated Norway may keep its direct sales model while other European countries move to distributors. |
| 比亚迪BYD | Sold | August 2021 | An independent importer | The first hundred Tang SUVs were delivered to Norwegian customers in August 2021. BYD finished 2025 tenth on the overall Norwegian brand list, driven by the Sealion 7. |
| 名爵MG | Sold | 2019 | The company itself | Norway was one of MG Motor Europe's first three markets, with the Netherlands and France, when continental sales opened in late 2019. One of the three Chinese brands carrying most of the volume. |
| 红旗Hongqi | Sold | January 2022 | An independent importer | FAW signed the Norwegian importer Motor Gruppen as its first European partner; E-HS9 deliveries began in January 2022 and passed 1,000 cars by July 2022. |
| 萤火虫Firefly | Sold | 2025 | The company itself | Nio's small-car brand used Norway and the Netherlands as its first two European markets, from the summer of 2025. |
| 极氪Zeekr | Sold | not published | The company itself | Zeekr named Norway among the western European markets to follow its 2023 Dutch and Swedish launch; the Norwegian start date is not established in this pass. |
| 东风Dongfeng | Sold | not published | An independent importer | The Dongfeng Box, sold in Norway as the Yummy, is imported by a company owned by the Sulland Group; start date not established in this pass. |
| 岚图Voyah | Sold | not published | An independent importer | Dongfeng's premium Voyah brand is among the Chinese marques present in Norway; start date and importer not established in this pass. |
| 上汽大通Maxus | Sold | not published | An independent importer | SAIC's Maxus sells cars and vans in Norway; start date not established in this pass. |
| 开沃Skywell | Sold | not published | An independent importer | Among the Chinese marques present in Norway; start date not established in this pass. |
| 极星Polestar | Sold | not published | The company itself | Norway has been one of Polestar's strongest markets since the brand's launch. |
| 沃尔沃Volvo Cars | Sold | not published | The company itself | Geely Holding has owned Volvo Cars since 2010; Norwegian entry long predates that. |
| 智马达smart | Sold | not published | The company itself | A 50/50 Mercedes-Benz–Geely Holding joint venture since 2020. |
| 路特斯Lotus | Sold | not published | An independent importer | Geely Holding has held a controlling stake since 2017. |
| 爱驰Aiways | Withdrawn | 2020 | An independent importer | Norway was one of Aiways's target European markets. Production in China stopped in the summer of 2023 and the company withdrew from its home market in 2024. |
The rules
Stated from the document that issued them, with the date each was read. Nothing here is an interpretation.
| Rule | What it says | As of | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| No tariffs on Chinese electric cars | Norway is not an EU member and has not adopted the European Union's countervailing duties on battery electric vehicles from China. The Norwegian government has said such tariffs are neither relevant nor desirable. Chinese-built cars therefore enter Norway on the same terms as any other import. | SupplyChainBrain | |
| VAT exemption on electric cars, and its phase-out | Norway exempted electric cars from VAT up to a purchase price of NOK 500,000. The threshold fell to NOK 300,000 from 1 January 2026, is set to fall to NOK 150,000 in 2027, and the exemption is to be removed entirely in 2028. The government has said it will raise the one-off registration tax on combustion cars to preserve the incentive to buy electric. | electrive.com | |
| Electric share of the market | About 95% of new passenger cars registered in Norway in 2025 were electric, effectively meeting the country's electrification target and prompting the phase-out of the purchase incentives. | electrive.com |
Western badges built in China and sold in Norway
| Model | Badge | Plant | Years | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model 3 | Tesla | Gigafactory Shanghai | 2021–present | Start year for Shanghai supply not confirmed from a primary source. |
| EX30 | Volvo | Zhangjiakou, Hebei; also Ghent, Belgium from April 2025 | 2023–present | |
| S90 | Volvo | Daqing, Heilongjiang | 2018–present | |
| Polestar 2, 3 and 4 | Polestar | Luqiao, Chengdu and Ningbo | 2020–present | |
| Cooper Electric and Aceman | Mini | Spotlight Automotive, Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu | 2023–present | |
| Tavascan | Cupra | Volkswagen Anhui, Hefei | 2024–present | In Norway this car carries no anti-subsidy duty; the EU undertaking of February 2026 is irrelevant here. |
| #1 and #3 | smart | Xi'an, Shaanxi | 2023–present | |
| Eletre and Emeya | Lotus | Wuhan, Hubei | 2023–present |
BMW iX3 (G08) · Cupra Tavascan · Dacia Spring · MG MG4 EV · Mini Cooper E / Cooper SE (J01) · Polestar Polestar 2 · Polestar Polestar 3 · Polestar Polestar 4 · smart #1 · Tesla Model 3 · Volvo EX30
Models recorded in Norway
| Model | Body | Status | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| BYD Han | Saloon | Sold | 506 km CLTC |
| BYD Tang | SUV | Sold | 530 km WLTP |
| Dongfeng Nammi Dongfeng Box | Hatchback | Sold | 330 km CLTC |
| Firefly Firefly | Hatchback | Announced | 420 km CLTC |
| Hongqi Hongqi E-HS9 | SUV | Sold | 760 km CLTC |
| NIO ES8 | SUV | Sold | 630 km CLTC |
| NIO ES6 | SUV | Sold | 450 km CLTC |
| NIO ET5 | Saloon | Sold | 585 km CLTC |
| NIO ET7 | Saloon | Sold | 550 km CLTC |
| Voyah Voyah Dream | MPV | Sold | 482 km WLTP |
| Voyah Voyah Free | SUV | Sold | 500 km WLTP |
| Xpeng G6 | SUV | Sold | 625 km CLTC |
| Xpeng G9 | SUV | Sold | 725 km CLTC |
| Zeekr 001 | Estate | Sold | 710 km CLTC |
| Zeekr 007 | Saloon | Sold | 715 km CLTC |
| Zeekr 7X | SUV | Sold | 620 km CLTC |
| Zeekr X | SUV | Sold | 330 km WLTP |
Best sellers
| Model | Brand | Year | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| BYD Sealion 7 | BYD | 2025 | The model that carried BYD to tenth place on Norway's overall brand list in 2025; the model volume is not published in the sources used here. |
| BYD | BYD | 2025 | The largest Chinese brand in Norway in 2025 and tenth among all brands. |
| Xpeng | Xpeng | 2025 | Brand total: 4,466 registrations, more than double 2024. |
| MG | MG | 2025 | One of the three Chinese brands — with BYD and Xpeng — that account for most Chinese-brand volume in Norway. |
Chinese cars in Norway: questions people ask
- Does Norway tax Chinese electric cars?
- No. Norway is not in the EU and has not adopted the European Union's countervailing duties on Chinese battery electric vehicles. The government has said such tariffs are neither relevant nor desirable, so Chinese cars enter on the same terms as any other import.
- How big are Chinese brands in Norway?
- Chinese-origin cars took 24,524 of the 179,549 new passenger cars registered in 2025 — a 13.7% share, up from 10.4% in 2024. In December alone they reached 17%, against 7.7% a year earlier.
- Why do Chinese carmakers launch in Norway first?
- Because it combines no tariffs with the highest electric share of any market in the world — about 95% of new cars in 2025 — and a small, concentrated dealer landscape. Xpeng, Nio and Hongqi all began their European sales here, and BYD delivered its first European cars to Norwegian customers in August 2021.
- Which Chinese brand sells best in Norway?
- BYD, which finished 2025 tenth on the overall brand list, driven by the Sealion 7. Xpeng more than doubled to 4,466 cars and MG is the third significant seller; the remaining Chinese brands in the market register only small numbers.
- Are Norway's electric-car incentives ending?
- They are being withdrawn on a published schedule. The VAT exemption applied up to NOK 500,000; the threshold fell to NOK 300,000 on 1 January 2026, is set to fall to NOK 150,000 in 2027 and to disappear in 2028. The registration tax on combustion cars is being raised to keep electric cars relatively cheaper.
- Is Leapmotor sold in Norway?
- No. Leapmotor International, the Stellantis joint venture that distributes Leapmotor in Europe, has covered every European market except Finland, Norway, Sweden and Denmark.
What changed
The only dated surface on this page. It records status changes, not news.
-
Norway's VAT exemption threshold for electric cars falls from NOK 500,000 to NOK 300,000, the first step in a phase-out ending in 2028.
-
OFV's 2025 figures show a record 179,549 new passenger cars, of which 24,524 — 13.7% — were Chinese-origin, up from 10.4% in 2024.
-
Nio's Firefly brand launches in Norway and the Netherlands, its first two European markets.
-
Hongqi begins E-HS9 deliveries in Norway through Motor Gruppen, FAW's first European partner; deliveries pass 1,000 cars by July 2022.
-
BYD delivers its first hundred Tang SUVs to Norwegian customers, its first European passenger-car deliveries.
-
Nio makes Norway its first overseas market and installs its first European battery-swap station in November.
-
Xpeng delivers its first cars outside China, the G3, to Norwegian customers.
Related
Sources for Norway
- Opplysningsrådet for Veitrafikken (OFV), Registreringsstatistikk. Read . Norway's road traffic information council; publishes the 30 best-selling brands and models by year, month and vehicle type. The figures quoted here come from published analyses of that series.
- SupplyChainBrain, EV Leader Norway Won't Follow EU on Chinese Electric Car Tariffs. Read . The Norwegian government's position that tariffs on Chinese EVs are neither relevant nor desirable.
- electrive.com, Norway to phase out electric vehicle VAT exemption from 2027. Read . The NOK 500,000 → 300,000 → 150,000 schedule and the 2028 removal, with the electric share of the market.
- CleanTechnica, XPeng begins invading Europe. Read . The first G3 deliveries in Norway at the end of 2020.
- NIO Inc., NIO Expands Its European Rollout, Starting Distribution in Five Countries. Read . Nio's European history and the Firefly rollout.
- BYD Company Ltd, First 100 BYD Tang SUVs set sail for Norway. Read .
- CnEVPost, Hongqi's E-HS9 electric SUV reaches 1,000 units delivered in Norway. Read . The Motor Gruppen partnership and the January 2022 start of deliveries.
- Opplysningsrådet for Veitrafikken (OFV), 2025 ble tidenes rekordår for bilsalget. Read . Record 2025 registrations and the Chinese-origin share.
- Xinhua, Chinese car brands expand foothold in Norwegian market. Read . The 13.7% 2025 share and the BYD, Xpeng and Zeekr ranking.
- The Car Expert, Which new cars are built in China?. Read .