Vegetation rehabilitation is one of the main means in managing soil and water loss, being able to effectively promote the development of eroded soil, improve the soil fertility level, enhance the soil microbial activities, and in further, affect the soil carbon and nitrogen cycles. Therefore, vegetation rehabilitation plays definite roles in the accumulation of soil organic carbon and nitrogen pools and the mitigation of greenhouse gases emission from soil. This paper summarized the effects of vegetation rehabilitation on the soil carbon and nitrogen cycles and the synergetic effects between soil quality and vegetation rehabilitation, and put forward the further research directions, which could provide the reference for the evaluation of the roles of vegetation rehabilitation in response to global climate change, and the practical guidance for the improvement of soil fertility and the recovery and sustainable development of degraded ecosystems.