Carbon Tariff Legal Research Under The Low Carbon Economy Background

Because of excessively carbon dioxide emission, the global temperature is warmer than ever before. How to take effective measures to control the carbon emission and slow down the global climate change has been becoming a hot topic in the international community. Due to the developed and developing countries have different carbon reduction emission responsibilities and obligation under United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and Kyoto Protocol. This kind of environmental trade conflict deeply touched to every country’s core interests, and gradually evolved into a struggle between survival rights and development of space, and also the re-regulation of development right, costs and development space is becoming a new focus in the worldwide. The carbon tariff is also originated in this deep background.Based on the background above, this paper trying to clarify the difference between carbon tariff and carbon tax and other related concepts, and defy the carbon tariff as a new kind of border adjustment measures. Then, according to the principle and the specific provisions of the GATT/WTO, the paper illustrates that the carbon tariff is violate and illegal existing GATT/WTO rules. Further, this paper uses WTO dispute settlement mechanism and some economic models and some classic cases to verify carbon tariffs operating mechanism is temporarily invalid and uncertainties of carbon reduction effect. Finally, this paper suggests that it is imperative to take effective measures to deal with or avoid the carbon tariff, not only take the political, economic, diplomatic measures, but also give priority to construct China’s carbon reduction legal system and regulations of carbon finance.