On October 14, 2022, Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) released a notice to revise Export Trade Control Order, adding two substance groups to Annex 1 “regarding export approval of chemical substances”. The new Order came into force on October 21, 2022.
The details of two substance groups are listed as below:
| Number | Chemical name | CAS number | Category | Is it under POPs convention |
| 1~49 | - | - | - | - |
| 50 | Decabromodiphenyl ether (decaBDE) | 1163-19-5 | Industrial chemicals | Yes |
51 | Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) | 335-67-1 | Industrial chemicals | Yes |
| PFOA’s salts | 3825-26-1, 335-95-5, 2395-00-8 | Industrial chemicals | Yes | |
| PFOA and related compounds | - | Industrial chemicals | Yes |
The full list can be accessed here.
Earlier in June, at the 10th meeting of the COP to the Rotterdam Convention, the above two substance groups were added to Annex 3 of the Convention. Japan has since amended its domestic regulations accordingly to comply with the Rotterdam Convention. In addition, both substances are listed in Annex A to the Stockholm Convention as persistent organic pollutants (POPs), which requires to eliminate their production and use.
In Japan, businesses are required to apply for permit from METI to export substances listed in Annex 1 “regarding export approval of chemical substances” under Export Trade Control Order.
