China tightens drone export controls and restricts tunnelling machines from November 18

China announced on Monday revised export controls on drones and key components, alongside licence requirements for specialised construction machinery bound for sensitive countries and regions in disputes with Beijing. The measures, announced by the Commerce Ministry citing national security and interests, take effect on 18 November. (Reuters; Anadolu Agency)

Under the drone rules, issued jointly with customs authorities and the Central Military Commission’s Equipment Development Department, exporters need government authorisation for UAV-specific autopilots, certain engines, and drones or unmanned airships capable of controlled flight beyond visual range with endurance of at least three hours. Certain shorter-endurance aircraft, UAVs with ranges of at least 300 km, and communications equipment, motors, propeller blades, software and related technologies are also covered. (Anadolu Agency)

The machinery measures cover tunnel boring machines, certain walking excavators and high-altitude wet shotcrete machines, plus specified components and technologies. Shipments to sensitive destinations will require individual licences, while exports elsewhere use a registration-based certification procedure. Bloomberg Law reports that dredger components including mud pumps and cutterheads are also on the list, and that the items have been classified as having “an obvious military-civil dual-use nature”. (Bloomberg Law)

Companies with effective internal compliance systems may qualify for general licences, with simplified procedures for exhibition exports. China exported about $793 million in self-propelled coal or rock cutters and tunnelling machinery in 2025, according to UN Comtrade data; Reuters notes tunnel boring machines are key construction equipment in neighbouring India, and China is among the key suppliers of tunnelling equipment used in metro rail and highway construction. (Devdiscourse/Reuters feed)