AUSTIN, Texas: Tesla CEO Elon Musk said he expects the company's Full Self-Driving (FSD) software to receive full regulatory approval in China by early 2026, potentially expanding access to one of Tesla's most important markets.

"We have partial approval in China, and hopefully we'll have full approval in China around February or March or so," Musk said during Tesla's annual general meeting on Thursday.

China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Tesla currently operates under partial approval in China, granted in February 2025. Before that, Chinese customers could only use a less advanced Autopilot version of the software. The FSD system, however, is still restricted in several ways; it cannot change gears or complete trips fully autonomously, such as moving from one parking space to another. It has also struggled to accurately read local traffic signs.

Despite these limitations, some Chinese Tesla owners have paid 64,000 yuan (US$9,000) for the FSD option in hopes that a full rollout would soon follow. The long wait for approval has been a significant point of frustration among buyers.

China remains one of Tesla's largest and most competitive markets, but its share has fallen to 8 percent as of last quarter, down from a peak of 15.4 percent in early 2023. Domestic rivals such as BYD and XPeng have attracted consumers with similar driver-assistance technologies, often included at no additional cost.

A full regulatory green light would allow Tesla to offer Chinese customers the same advanced FSD experience available in the United States, a key milestone as Musk continues to pitch autonomous driving as the company's future growth engine.