Geely-owned Volvo Cars has received a specific authorisation in the US under the ICTS Connected Vehicles Rule, allowing it to continue importing and selling connected vehicles in the country.
The approval was issued after Volvo Car USA completed a required process with the US Department of Commerce.
The company said the review was conducted on a case-by-case basis and followed discussions with the Office of Information and Communications Technology and Services, the Department of Commerce and other US officials on matters including governance, technology and data security.
US regulations effectively prevent Chinese vehicles from going on sale in the US market, as part of a crackdown on vehicle software and hardware tech from China. The rules make US sale difficult for products with Chinese-developed software - which potentially would include connected vehicle tech used by Geely-owned Volvo Cars in its cars.
In a statement, Volvo Cars said the authorisation allows it to continue its “growth plans” in the US.
The US is one of Volvo Cars’ largest markets. It is also home to the company’s manufacturing facility in Charleston, South Carolina.
Volvo Cars said it has invested more than $1.3bn in the Charleston site so far, creating more than 2,000 jobs.
At the end of September 2025, the company announced further investment in South Carolina to add two more vehicles to production before 2030.
Its US headquarters is in New Jersey, where around 400 people are employed. Another 200 corporate employees are based elsewhere in the country.
Last year, Volvo Cars marked 70 years in the US. Volvo Car USA currently has 281 dealers across 48 states, employing about 11,500 people.
Recently, Volvo Cars and Google demonstrated Google Gemini vehicle camera integration in the EX60, at the Google I/O conference. With the driver’s permission, Gemini will be able to see and understand its surroundings from the perspective of the car in real time.
Immersive Navigation from Google Maps will first be available in the Volvo EX60, EX90 and ES90.
