In this paper a two-step algorithm is proposed to efficiently generate rebar elements from 3D CAD data in the context of CAD/CAE data transfer. The first step is an algorithm to identify various type rebar objects and their attributes by analyzing 3D CAD data in STEP format, which is one of the international data standards. The second algorithmic step is a procedure to generate one-dimensional rebar elements from the object data made through the first step for finite element analysis or other CAE tasks. Successful rebar element data generation from real 3D CAD data for a reinforced concrete structure shows the efficacy of the proposed algorithm.