Abstract: After a major earthquake, traditional reinforced concrete structures tend to exhibit residual deformations, leading to difficulties in post-earthquake repairs. A solution to this issue is proposed by introducing a self-centering rebar splice (SRS) for reinforced concrete columns. Firstly, the SRS design method and mechanical model were established, and the mechanical model is validated through experimental tests. The SRS is used to connect the longitudinal rebars at the bottom of reinforced concrete columns, thereby creating self-entering reinforced concrete columns. A method for designing the bending resistance of the self-centering columns is developed and validated through experiments and numerical simulations. Numerical analyses are conducted to investigate the influence of axial compression ratio, SRS pre-tension force, SRS effective stroke, concrete strength, and number of longitudinal rebars on the mechanical properties of the self-centering reinforced concrete columns under lateral loads. The results indicate that SRS significantly enhances the elastic deformation capacity of reinforced concrete columns and reduces the residual displacement. The elastic deformation capacity of self-centering columns is directly proportional to the effective stroke of the splice. The axial compression ratio and pre-tension force notably affect the activation force and peak bearing capacity of self-centering columns.