China Issues First Mandatory National Standard for L3/L4 Autonomous Driving Systems, Effective July 1, 2027

The mandatory national standard "Intelligent and Connected Vehicles – Safety Requirements for Automated Driving Systems" (GB 44721–2026), developed and administered by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), has been approved and published by the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) and the Standardization Administration of China (SAC). It is scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2027. This standard applies to Category M (passenger-carrying) and Category N (goods-carrying) vehicles equipped with Level 3 (L3) and Level 4 (L4, highly automated driving) systems, but does not apply to automated parking systems. The standard sets forth requirements in four key areas: First, it mandates enterprises to establish a comprehensive lifecycle safety assurance mechanism. Vehicle manufacturers must build capabilities covering the entire product lifecycle—from design and development, through production, to post-deployment—across four dimensions: safety policy, risk management, safety assurance, and safety improvement. During R&D validation, manufacturers are required to conduct simulation, closed-course, and on-road testing, ensuring that testing resources and conditions meet specified requirements. Second, it strengthens the system’s capability to perform dynamic driving tasks. The automated driving system must achieve at least the safety performance level of a competent and attentive human driver, and must not pose unreasonable safety risks to users or other road users. The standard also specifies safety requirements for various driving scenarios and defines triggering conditions and execution protocols for minimum risk maneuvers. Third, it standardizes human-machine interaction and user notification requirements. The activation and deactivation processes of the automated driving system must be safe, and clear guidelines are provided for status indication. L3 systems must include functionality to monitor the driver’s readiness to take over control. Manufacturers are required to inform users—via owner’s manuals, official websites, in-vehicle terminals, and other channels—about the system’s automation level, operational design domain, limitations, control strategies, and user role transitions. Fourth, it enhances multi-dimensional testing and verification methods by establishing a framework comprising “enterprise safety assurance capability assessment + safety documentation review + confirmatory testing.” Third-party testing organizations shall conduct confirmatory tests using a combination of closed-course, on-road, and simulation methods, in accordance with the relevant voluntary national standards GB/T 41798, GB/T 44719, and GB/T 47025.