The global technical regulations for autonomous vehicle systems, which were led by China in developing under the United Nations, have been approved for release.
The 199th plenary meeting of the United Nations World Organization for the Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations...
The 199th plenary meeting of the United Nations World Organization for the Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations (UN/WP.29) was held in Geneva, Switzerland, from 22 to 26 June 2026. At the meeting, the United Nations Global Technical Regulation on Autonomous Driving Systems (ads gtr), jointly developed by China, the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Japan, was voted on by all Parties and officially approved for release. In recent years, autonomous driving technology has accelerated iterative upgrading and industrialization applications. Major countries and regions in the world have taken it as a strategic commanding point for the future development of the automotive industry, and have introduced planning policies and strengthened the development of regulations. The penetration rate of new vehicles equipped with the combined driver assistance system in China has exceeded 60%. In December 2025, the first two models equipped with the L3 level (conditional automatic driving) system were conditionally licensed. Japan and Germany issued type approval certificates for models equipped with the L3 level system in 2020 and 2021 respectively. The United States supports accelerated road driving and commercial applications through regulatory exemptions and other means. Previously, at the global level and in major countries and regions, there was no complete unified system of standards and regulations for autonomous driving technology. Countries mainly promoted R&D and application according to their own experience, and the development of globally unified technical regulations for autonomous driving systems became the consensus of all parties....
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Compared to the ADS GTR, the domestic standard comprehensively covers its core technical content while grounding in China's industrial realities and regulatory needs. It proposes more detailed technical requirements specifically for L3 and L4 levels of autonomous driving systems, clearly defining safety bottom lines for different product levels; it further refines user training and notification contents to prevent risks of misuse and abuse; based on the internationally recognized "multi-pillar approach" test scheme, it innovatively proposes unified standardized test scenarios, providing support for the implementation and enforcement of international regulations.