China to Add Four Types of Phthalates as Restricted Substances under RoHS Control

On March 14, 2022, the Working Group of Electrical and Electronic Products Pollution Prevention Standards, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology held an online meeting, announcing to add four types of phthalates as restricted substances under the Measures for the Administration of the Restricted Use of the Hazardous Substances Contained in Electrical and Electronic Products (China RoHS 2).

China RoHS 2, which was implemented on July 1, 2016, regulates the following types of restricted hazardous substances:

• Lead and its compounds

• Mercury and its compounds

• Cadmium and its compounds

• Hexavalent chromium compounds

• Polybrominated biphenyls (PBB)

• Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE)

To restrict the use of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic products proposed in the "14th Five-Year Industrial Green Development Plan" and keep in pace with the Directive 2015/863/EU published by EU commission to amend Annex II to EU RoHS 2 (Directive 2011/65/EU), China proposed to add another four types of phthalates as restricted substances, including:

• Diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP)

• Dibutyl phthalate (DBP)

• Benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP)

• Bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP)

Interested parties involving the12 types of electrical and electronic products, e.g. enterprises, industry associations, and testing organizations, etc. will be required to complete questionnaire surveys before March 21, 2022. 

According to the work plan, we will see some progress in updates of standards very soon, including:

• By September, 2022: revising GB/T 26572- 2011 Requirements of Concentration Limits for Certain Restricted Substances in Electrical and Electronic Products

• By the end of 2022: revising SJ/T 11364-2014 Marking for the Restriction of the Use of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Product

Efforts will be made to promote the upgrading of GB/T 26572-2011 Requirements of Concentration Limits for Certain Restricted Substances in Electrical and Electronic Products from a recommended standard to a mandatory national standard, which will take 3-5 years.

Besides, GB/T 26125-2011 Electrical and Electronic Products- Determination of Six Regulated Substances (Lead, Mercury, Cadmium, Hexavalent Chromium, Polybrominated Biphenyls, Polybrominated) will be replaced by the GB/T 39560 serial standards: