Japan’s Auto Industry Steps Up Global Push Against Climate Policies

言語タブで日本語に切り替えられます。

The Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA)—which represents major Japanese automakers including Toyota, Honda, Nissan, and Suzuki—is expanding its global policy engagement, opposing major climate regulations worldwide and framing this as support for a “multi-pathway” approach to decarbonization. Recently, JAMA called for the repeal of Japan's domestic environmental tax, advocated to weaken European CO₂ regulations, and promoted biofuels as a viable alternative to full electrification in Brazil. The global nature of JAMA’s policy engagement stands out from other regional automotive industry associations, which mostly engage with domestic climate policies. InfluenceMap has not observed comparable global engagement from other automotive industry associations—including the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) and the US-based Alliance for Automotive Innovation.

Japan’s Tax Reform Debate: Environmental Performance-Based Tax

JAMA called for the repeal of the Environmental Performance-Based Tax (EPBT), a local tax introduced in 2019 of 0% to 3% of a vehicle’s purchase price based on its fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This tax generates around ¥190 billion annually and covers new and used cars, excluding battery electric vehicles, fuel cell electric vehicles, and plug-in hybrid vehicles.

InfluenceMap tracked JAMA’s recent engagement on the tax:

• On September 19, JAMA published a request for Tax Reform and Budget for FY2026, which advocated to repeal the current environmental performance-based tax.

• In a September 18 press conference, JAMA’s chairman, the current CEO of Isuzu Motor, and numerous vice chairmen—the CEOs of Toyota, Honda, and Suzuki—advocated to abolish the tax system.

The tax has triggered debate between ministries:

• The Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry, taking a similar position to JAMA, called for the abolition of the tax to relieve the consumer tax burden and stimulate vehicle purchases.

• The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation, and the Ministry of Environment vocalized support for the tax to curb negative environmental impacts and to secure financial resources for infrastructure maintenance and management.

During her party leadership campaign in September 2025, Japan’s new Prime Minister and Liberal Democratic Party leader, Sanae Takaichi, pledged a two-year suspension of the EPBT, claiming it would boost vehicle purchases and protect the domestic automotive sector.

Opposition to Europe's 2035 Zero Emissions Target

From 2035 onwards, the European Union (EU) will require new passenger cars and light commercial vehicles sold in the region to have zero g CO₂/km tailpipe emissions, effectively phasing out new sales of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. The target also introduces interim 2030 goals—a 55% reduction for new cars and a 50% reduction for new vans.

In a recent position paper, JAMA opposed the 2035 100% CO₂ emissions reduction target for new cars and vans in the EU, advocating for a technology neutral approach over complete electrification, including a role for biofuels and renewable fuels.

In October 2025, JAMA also responded to the EU consultation on the revision of CO₂ emission standards for cars and vans. The association again advocated for technology neutrality over the rapid electrification of light-duty vehicles, emphasizing a longer-term role for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), fuel cell electric vehicles, carbon-neutral fuels, renewable fuels, and biofuels. It did not support the EU’s 2035 regulatory phase-out of ICE cars and vans, instead stating conditional support for the emissions standards while calling for major exceptions and flexibilities that would undermine the regulation’s ambition. The association also advocated against what it described as an “overly stringent” utility factor—an argument that InfluenceMap finds the auto industry is pushing to preserve a role for PHEVs, which perform poorly in real-world conditions.

Joint Statement with Brazil's Automotive Industry Association Ahead of COP30

Ahead of COP30 in Brazil and the International Ministerial Meeting on Sustainable Fuels in Japan in September 2025, JAMA and the Brazilian Association of Automotive Vehicle Manufacturers (ANFAVEA) published a joint statement highlighting sustainable fuels' role in road transport decarbonization. The joint statement advocated for a technology neutral approach to the decarbonization of light-duty vehicles over complete electrification and the longer-term use of biofuels in hybrid vehicles and fuel cell vehicles.
In November 2025, additional 6 automotive industry associations—including the Italian Association of the Automotive Industry (ANFIA), the Romanian Automotive Manufacturers and Importers Association (APIA), Association importateurs suisses d'automobiles (Auto-Suisse), the Belgian and Luxembourg car and two-wheeler federation (FEBIAC), the Korea Automobile & Mobility Association (KAMA), and the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA)— endorsed the joint statement, underscoring the growing momentum behind a technology-neutral approach.

JAMA’s Claims Contradict Scientific Guidance

JAMA’s advocacy to weaken emissions standards and carve out a long-term role for biofuels is not aligned with scientific pathways to limit warming to 1.5°C—and risks undermining the decarbonization of road transport. Its efforts to stall the transition to electric vehicles appear intended to protect the legacy technologies preferred by the automotive sector incumbents within its membership.

Fact Check: Biofuels

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) advises that, while biofuels may play a short- or medium-term supporting role in mitigation, road transport electrification has the greatest potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the long term (IPCC AR6 Synthesis Report). Transport & Environment research underscores that biofuels are an inefficient and environmentally risky detour for the automotive sector, while electric vehicles and non-crop-based fuels are the only scalable, sustainable option for road transport. Flexibilities for biofuels could weaken the stringency of policies and undermine critical emissions reductions.

Fact Check: Policy Neutrality

Incumbent industries, including the automotive sector, often use arguments around policy or technology “neutrality” to promote technologies that serve their interests but do not optimize emissions reductions. The Japanese auto industry’s advocacy for a “multi-pathway” approach draws on this argument, emphasizing the utilization of various technologies rather than prioritizing full electrification. The IPCC, however, advises that targeted policies are crucial because high technology costs can hinder adoption. Technology-specific policies have driven wider adoption of low-carbon and energy-efficient technologies, particularly renewable electricity, and are central to decarbonizing transport (AR6, WG3, Mitigation of Climate Change, April 2022).

Global Climate Advocacy by JAMA’s Members

JAMA’s engagement mirrors that of its major members, suggesting a broader strategy among such automakers to slow the sector’s transition by resisting stronger global policies. InfluenceMap’s March 2024 analysis found that Japanese automakers are more negatively engaged with India’s Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards and battery electric vehicle policies than Indian, European, and Korean automakers in the region. InfluenceMap’s global assessment of automaker advocacy similarly ranked Japanese automakers as the lowest performers on the EV transition, noting high levels of oppositional activity across multiple regions, including Australia and the United States. This pattern has since continued—see the table below for a summary of recent positions taken by key JAMA members.