Polestar claims it was blindsided by sales ban | The Verge
Overview
Tech Expand Amazon Apple Facebook Google Microsoft Samsung Business See all tech
Reviews Expand Smart Home Reviews Phone Reviews Tablet Reviews Headphone Reviews See all reviews
Details
Science Expand Space Energy Environment Health See all science
Entertainment Expand TV Shows Movies Audio See all entertainment
Policy Expand Antitrust Politics Law Security See all policy
Gadgets Expand Laptops Phones TVs Headphones Speakers Wearables See all gadgets
Verge Shopping Expand Buying Guides Deals Gift Guides See all shopping
Streaming Expand Disney HBONetflix You Tube Creators See all streaming
Transportation Expand Electric Cars Autonomous Cars Ride-sharing Scooters See all transportation
Transportation Close Transportation Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Follow Follow See All Transportation
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Policy Close Policy Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Follow Follow See All Policy
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Cars Close Cars Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Follow Follow See All Cars
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
The company says that communication from the Trump administration led it to believe it would be approved to continue selling its EVs in the US.
The company says that communication from the Trump administration led it to believe it would be approved to continue selling its EVs in the US.
Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 26: Polestar cars are displayed in the showroom at a Polestar dealership on June 26, 2026 in Beverly Hills, California. Electric car maker Polestar will be barred from selling new vehicles in the United States starting with the 2027 model year after the Commerce Department cited national security concerns under new connected-vehicle regulations. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Polestar said the Trump administration strung it along for months before finally rejecting its request to continue selling its electric vehicles in the US under a rule outlawing vehicles with connected software from China.
In an August 18th letter sent to dealers and obtained by The Verge, Polestar said it doesn’t have a clear answer as to why its application to continue selling its EVs in the US was denied, considering its sister company Volvo was authorized to sell its vehicles despite similar corporate ownership. (The letter was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.)
The US Department of Commerce approved Volvo in May 2026 to continue importing and selling its vehicles in the US, despite restrictions tied to its majority Chinese owner, Geely. But one month later, the department rejected Polestar’s similar request, leading to the company to announce it would stop selling its vehicles in the US starting with the 2027 model year. The rule, which originated under the Biden administration, bans the import and sale of vehicles with connected software from hostile countries, including China.
Polestar owners left ‘holding the bag’ after EV brand pulls out of the US
In the letter to dealers, Polestar’s head of product Peter Wexler lays out the timeline of the company’s communications with the Trump administration, starting with a May 29, 2025 application to the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) under the Commerce Department. In subsequent meetings, Wexler says Polestar was given the impression that Polestar would be approved, considering its vehicles are functionally similar to Volvo’s.
Jeffrey Kessler, Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security, said during an in-person meeting with Polestar’s representatives “that it would be reasonable for Polestar to expect approval of its applications if Volvo Cars was approved to sell its cars under effectively the same shareholding and ownership structure and with the same hardware and software in the Polestar 3 as the Volvo EX90,” Wexler writes.
Polestar told the administration it open to a variety of “mitigation measures” to ensure its vehicles were compliant with the ban on Chinese software, including regular audits, geographic restrictions on data storage and management, and limitations on digital keys and remote access. But the administration declined all such offers, Wexler said.
“BIS never engaged in any such discussions with Polestar,” he writes. “Instead, BIS communicated that it had all the information it required to render a decision.”
Wexler said that Polestar is continuing to press the administration for an explanation on why it was denied approval. The company was sued recently by Polestar dealer Prestige Imports in New Jersey, which accuses the company of engineering its own exit from the US by failing to do enough to satisfy regulators at the Commerce Department.
Andrew J. Hawkins Close Andrew J. Hawkins Transportation editor Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Follow Follow See All by Andrew J. Hawkins
Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Cars Close Cars Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Follow Follow See All Cars
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Electric Cars Close Electric Cars Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Follow Follow See All Electric Cars
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Policy Close Policy Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Follow Follow See All Policy
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Transportation Close Transportation Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Follow Follow See All Transportation
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Volvo Close Volvo Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Follow Follow See All Volvo
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Raspberry Pi shares its official tutorial for making a cyberdeck
Android is getting its own weird dots to cure car sickness
The cat-and-mouse game over 3D-printed guns has begun
The Verge is a part of PMX Global, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Media Corporation.
Key Takeaways
- Tech Expand Amazon Apple Facebook Google Microsoft Samsung Business See all tech
- Reviews Expand Smart Home Reviews Phone Reviews Tablet Reviews Headphone Reviews See all reviews
- Science Expand Space Energy Environment Health See all science
- Entertainment Expand TV Shows Movies Audio See all entertainment
- Policy Expand Antitrust Politics Law Security See all policy
