China Car Parts Certification - Certification Alliance for Vehicles (CAV)

China car parts certification for certain vehicle parts will be issued by the Certification Alliance for Vehicles (CAV) as of July 1, 2024, onwards.

The voluntary certification process with a certification organization such as the China Quality Certification Centre (CQC) or the China Certification Centre for Automotive Products (CCAP) remains unchanged.

This means that motor vehicle parts manufacturers will continue to apply for voluntary product certification through a Certification Body that will then issue the voluntary product certificate in the name of the CAV. Once the certificate is issued it will be filed on the Alliances’ website.

How does this impact motor vehicle part manufacturers?

Announcements were made by the Alliance’s various Certification Bodies (e.g., the CCAP on June 30th and the CQC on July 2nd) that:

From 01 July 2024, CAV certificates will only be issued for vehicle parts that have a published CAV implementation rule (see the table below for the vehicle parts that are affected):

- from this date Alliance member organizations will no longer issue certificates in their own name. The certificate will be issued in the name of the Certification Alliance for Vehicles and delivered by the various Certification Bodies
- once issued, all certificates will be available on the CAV website @: https://www.cav-online.com.cn

This does not affect the validity of certificates already issued by alliance member organizations such as the CQC and the CCAP:

- it is not mandatory to apply for a new CAV-issued certificate
- upon request, a valid certificate can be converted to a CAV issued certificate. The participating Certification Bodies have announced that they will do this free of charge.

The certification process for obtaining a CAV certificate or receiving a factory inspection remains unchanged.

Key benefits of this revised system of issuing China car parts certification (voluntary certification)

Motor vehicle parts with voluntary certificates issued by the CAV are now recognized and accepted by all Alliance members.

Published CAV implementation rules (affected products)

The following regulations have been published:

No. Product group nameImplementing rule document code*1Safety Belts of AutomobileCAV-01-20232External Lighting and Light Signaling Device of Motor VehiclesCAV-02-20233Indirect Vision Device of Motor VehiclesCAV-03-20234Seats and Head Restraints of AutomobileCAV-04-20235Vehicle driving recorders 6Vehicle Reflective Marking 7Automotive Safety GlassCAV-10-20238Horns of Motor VehiclesCAV-09-20239Brake hoses for motor vehiclesCAV-08-202310Fuel Tanks for Motor VehiclesCAV-06-202311Retro-reflector for Motor Vehicles 12Interior Materials for Motor VehiclesCAV-05-202313Door Locks & Door Retention for Motor VehiclesCAV-07-202314Triangle warning sign 15Performance of Hydrogen Fuel Cell Engines 16Safety of Hydrogen Fuel Cell Engines 17Hydrogen filling port for fuel cell vehicles

*If no regulation is listed for a product group, this means that no CAV certificate can be issued for this product group at present.

Background: about China’s Certification Alliance for Vehicles

Established under the supervision of SAMR (State Administration for Market Regulation) at the beginning of 2022, the Motor Vehicle Certification Alliance (CAV) held its inaugural meeting on August 29, 2022. The CAV’s core members include:

China Quality Certification Centre (CQC)

China Certification Centre for Automotive Products (CCAP)

China Automotive Quality Control (CAQC)

China Automobile Institute Kerry Testing and Certification (Chongqing) Co, Ltd. (CCARI)

The alliance aims to improve the recognition of certification results, reduce the bureaucratic impact on companies, exchange best practices to enhance manufacturing quality and promote technological progress.