China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) has proposed a mandatory national standard that would restrict the use of exterior 'smart-driving' indicator lights to vehicles with L3-level autonomous driving or above, according to a draft for public comment released on October 20. The draft, part of a broader set of five mandatory national standards, also bans displaying text or emoji-style patterns on exterior lights.
The proposed rules, reported by Chinese outlet NetEase Auto, would designate a specific blue-green color for the lights, which must automatically turn on when the autonomous driving system is activated and turn off when it is deactivated. Manual control would be prohibited. Vehicles with L2 or lower driver assistance would not be allowed to use the lights, effectively ending the practice of using blue lights as a marketing gimmick on vehicles with only partial automation.
Currently, many Chinese EV makers fit small blue lights to their vehicles to signal that driver assistance is active. However, the existing standard GB 4785-2019 does not include blue as a legal color for ordinary passenger cars, nor does it list a 'smart-driving status indicator' as a recognized lamp category. This has left the lights in a legal gray area for L2 vehicles.
The China Automotive Standardization Research Institute has previously warned that blue lights can cause glare at night and confuse other road users, leading to misunderstandings about who is in control of the vehicle. The new standard aims to clarify that the lights indicate the system is in control, not that the driver is using assistance.
Text and emoji displays banned
The draft also prohibits exterior lights from displaying any text or forming patterns that resemble human faces, animal faces, or other anthropomorphic shapes. This would effectively ban features like 'thank you for letting me pass' messages or smiley-face animations that some automakers have introduced on taillights. Gesture control of lights would be banned, and voice control to turn them off would be prohibited, though voice activation would be allowed if a manual switch is clearly marked.
The standard also addresses light mixing, requiring that turn signals not be combined with brake lights or rear fog lights, and that variable-intensity signal lights dim or brighten synchronously.
The draft suggests the new standard take effect on January 1, 2028, with a transition period of up to 48 months for vehicles already type-approved. The public comment period runs until December 19, 2026. How existing vehicles will be affected—whether through over-the-air updates or hardware changes—remains to be clarified in the final version and supporting regulations.
