The “Regulations of the People’s Republic of China against Improper Foreign Jurisdiction” (hereinafter referred to as the “Regulations”) was promulgated and implemented on April 13.
As an important new regulation in the construction of China’s foreign-related legal system, the promulgation of the Regulations is regarded by the industry as a key institutional arrangement to deal with foreign “long-arm jurisdiction”. It also injects stronger legal protection for Chinese home appliance companies to steadily expand overseas markets.
In the context of a complex and ever-changing global trade environment and rising overseas compliance risks, China’s home appliance industry, as an important pillar of foreign trade exports, is ushering in a system benefit with practical significance.
In recent years, the global competitiveness of China’s home appliance industry has continued to increase, and products such as refrigerators, air conditioners, washing machines, small household appliances and cleaning appliances have maintained high penetration rates in overseas markets.
Especially in the markets of Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Latin America, Chinese brands are accelerating their “going out” strategy and their export scale continues to expand.
China’s home appliance exports will increase from US$83.7 billion in 2020 to US$111.4 billion in 2025, occupying a pivotal position in the global market.
The latest data from the General Administration of Customs shows that in the first quarter of 2026, China’s export volume of home appliances was 1.174 billion units, a year-on-year increase of 9.5%; the export value was US$24.535 billion, a year-on-year increase of 1.5%, and exports maintained strong resilience.
However, some countries frequently take additional restrictive measures against Chinese companies in the name of “national security”, “supply chain review” and “trade restrictions”, involving account freezes, technical restrictions, supply chain information disclosure and cooperation restrictions, etc., which puts obvious operating pressure on export companies.
For a large number of home appliance companies that have set up factories, warehouses and channels overseas, cross-border compliance costs continue to rise and have become an important variable affecting globalization.
The implementation of the “Regulations” provides a clearer legal basis for enterprises to respond to inappropriate extraterritorial jurisdiction, and also builds a solid legal defense line for home appliance export enterprises.
The Ministry of Justice made it clear that the Regulations aim to safeguard national sovereignty, security, and development interests, and protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens and organizations.
The “Regulations” systematically build a system of identification, blocking and countermeasures to deal with improper extraterritorial jurisdiction by foreign countries.
According to the Regulations, the legal department of the State Council will work with relevant agencies to identify inappropriate foreign extraterritorial jurisdictional measures, and can carry out investigations, foreign consultations and other work in accordance with the law; combined with practical needs, establish an accurate and applicable injunction system.
Foreign organizations and individuals that promote or participate in the implementation of inappropriate foreign extraterritorial jurisdictional measures may be included in the list of malicious entities in accordance with the law, and countermeasures and restrictive measures such as sealing, detaining, freezing property, prohibiting or restricting transaction cooperation, and fines may be taken.
From an industry perspective, the “Regulations” will have at least three positive impacts on home appliance export companies.
First, the basis for corporate rights protection is clearer.
In the past, some export companies were often in a “dilemma” when faced with unreasonable overseas demands.
If you cooperate with the enforcement, domestic laws and national interests may be violated; if you refuse, you may face the risk of overseas penalties.
Today, the Regulations clearly establish an identification and blocking mechanism. Relevant organizations and individuals are not allowed to implement or assist in the implementation of measures that are deemed to be inappropriate extraterritorial jurisdiction.
This means that when home appliance companies encounter unreasonable data retrieval, account freezing or supply chain restriction requirements, they can have clearer domestic legal support.
Second, the compliance costs of going overseas are expected to be optimized.
Previously, many home appliance companies invested a lot of resources in legal affairs, risk control, and supply chain isolation in order to avoid the risks of overseas “long-arm jurisdiction”.
In particular, leading companies often need to establish complex compliance review mechanisms when operating in the European and North American markets.
The “Regulations” draw clear risk boundaries for enterprises by clarifying identification standards, prohibition systems and exemption mechanisms, helping to reduce additional costs caused by excessive compliance.
This is undoubtedly an important benefit for white appliance, kitchen appliance and cleaning appliance companies that are accelerating their overseas expansion.
Third, international business negotiations have become more confident.
From the perspective of industrial competition, the Regulations are not only a legal system, but will also enhance the negotiation capabilities of Chinese enterprises in international cooperation.
Especially in overseas channel cooperation, supply chain negotiation and trade dispute resolution, companies have stronger institutional support behind them.
For Chinese home appliance companies that are promoting their brands overseas and localized operations, this “national legal guarantee” will help enhance the confidence of partners and stabilize overseas order expectations.
For Chinese home appliance export companies, the “Regulations” not only provide companies with a legal “protective shield”, but also inject strong confidence from the national level into the global layout and export growth of the home appliance industry.
As China’s foreign-related legal system continues to improve, Chinese home appliance companies will move toward the world with more determination and continue to consolidate and expand their competitive advantages in the global market.
