MITI’s new CBU EV policy on July 1 is in effect, but existing stock still sold at old prices until it runs out

The new rules concerning imported electric vehicles (EVs) may have quietly come into effect, but it looks like there will be some time before everything becomes clear and concrete on pricing-related matters. Announced in May, the ministry of international trade and industry’s (MITI) revised policy for CBU EVs came into effect on July 1, 2026.

Under the new policy, all CBU EVs are subject to two main conditions, which is to have a minimum declared cost, insurance and freight (CIF) value of RM200,000 as well as a minimum power output of 180 kW (which is equivalent to 245 PS or 241 hp).

While the new regulations define that any CBU EV model coming in after that date has to satisfy the requirements, the rules are not applied to units that have already been imported into the country and have been cleared for sale, as well as stock at local ports or in transit. These are exempted from the workings of the new policy, with these existing stocks allowed to be sold at current prices until they are exhausted.

Given that, you’d expect that there would be a bit of a rush to get something before any potential price hike, and there seems to be. As The Star reports, buyers have been hitting showrooms looking to secure deals. For those who aren’t selective, it should be easy enough.

However, those not planning to take the plunge immediately with whatever there is or forced to wait beyond current stock are finding that there is less clarity on the matter. As noted in the report, consumers’ questions regarding any potential price changes generally remained unanswered, with some noting that front-line staff seemed unclear about the transition or possible changes to pricing.

The short of it is that whatever inventory is available right now will continue to be sold at current prices, and that includes units inbound and cleared to go before the policy took effect. Most car brands should have sufficient stock in hand for the next couple of months at least, so prices should remain as they are for a bit – that’s the general communication we received from most brands doing CBU EVs.

Almost all (some didn’t want to comment) indicated that they had adequate landed stock, wih prices for these not affected yet, but they added that for new shipments, those should be subject to change (Porsche is the exception, but this can be put down to adjustments finally catching up following the end of tax exemptions at the start of the year, and not from revisions from the new policy, similar to the repricing of the Denza D9 with taxes applied in January).

We were also told that there was no official communication on the matter as yet. Most of the players said that they would continue to monitor developments closely, review the implementation details, and evaluate the appropriate strategies moving forward.

Meanwhile, Malaysian Automotive Associa­tion (MAA) president Mohd Shamsor Mohd Zain told The Star that EV sellers remain obligated to disclose pricing and inventory origins at the point of order. “Whenever sellers take an EV order, they must disclose the exact price and whether it is existing or new stock to the buyer. Prospective buyers themselves should be able to gauge if an imported EV is new or old stock by looking at the seller’s quoted price, since new stock will likely always be sold at over RM200,000,” he said.

He added that the new regulations would likely cause a temporary setback for the EV market, with a shortage of certain models expected for a few months. Additionally, with fewer imported models available, he said consumer demand will shift towards remaining CBU stock and transition to incoming locally-assembled completely knocked-down (CKD) units.

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