Q.01

Is decaBDE banned in China?

Yes. China has banned decabromodiphenyl ether (decaBDE, 十溴二苯醚, CAS 1163-19-5) since 1 January 2024. Production, use, import and export are all prohibited. The three exempted uses all expired on 31 December 2023, so no use exemption is still running today.

The legal basis

  • The Stockholm Convention amendment, as implemented in China (MEE Announcement 2023 No. 20, in force 6 June 2023). The announcement says China "禁止生产、使用、进出口十溴二苯醚" (prohibits the production, use, import and export of decaBDE) apart from three exempted uses [1]:

    1. flame-retardant textiles, excluding clothing and toys;
    2. additives in plastic housings, and parts for domestic heating appliances, irons, fans and immersion heaters, that contain or directly contact electrical parts or must meet flame-retardancy standards, at under 10% by weight of the part;
    3. polyurethane foam for building insulation.

    All three exemptions ran "至2023年12月31日止" (until 31 December 2023). The amendment took effect for China on 6 June 2023 [1]. At treaty level, decaBDE (commercial mixture) is listed in Stockholm Convention Annex A (Elimination) under decision SC-8/10 [2].

  • Customs bans on import and export (MOFCOM Announcement 2023 No. 63, in effect from 1 January 2024). DecaBDE is item 1 on both the Prohibited Import Goods Catalogue (9th batch) and the Prohibited Export Goods Catalogue (8th batch), under customs code 2909309018 [3][4][5].

  • The Key Controlled New Pollutants List (2023 edition), MEE Order No. 28, in force from 1 March 2023. DecaBDE is entry 三 (3). The entry:

    • prohibits production and processing/use outside the same three uses, which expired on 31 December 2023;
    • requires mandatory clean-production audits for companies using it in those uses;
    • prohibits import and export from 1 January 2024;
    • requires banned material classed as hazardous waste to be managed as such.

    (MEE, 重点管控新污染物清单（2023年版）)

Other Chinese lists that name decaBDE

  • List of Severely Restricted Toxic Chemicals (2023 edition, Announcement 2023 No. 32): decaBDE is entry 8. Its permitted uses are limited to the same three exemptions "在特定豁免有效期内（2023 年 12 月 31 日前）" (within the specific-exemption period, before 31 December 2023) [6]. That period is now over.
  • Priority Controlled Chemicals List, first batch (2017 No. 83): decaBDE is listed as PC020 [7].

What the bans do not cover

  • Laboratory-scale research and reference standards are outside the prohibitions. This is stated in Announcement 2023 No. 20, the customs catalogues and Order No. 28.
  • Unintentional trace contaminants in products and articles are also outside the prohibitions under Announcement 2023 No. 20 and Order No. 28 [1][5]. None of these texts gives a numerical trace threshold.

Approach: I searched China's MEE Stockholm Convention implementation announcements, the Prohibited Import and Export Goods Catalogues, the Severely Restricted Toxic Chemicals List, the Priority Controlled Chemicals List and the Stockholm Convention POPs roster. I read the Key Controlled New Pollutants List on the MEE website, since it is not in the datasets.

Q.02

Is DBDPE allowed as a replacement?

Yes, for now. I found no Chinese measure that bans or restricts DBDPE (decabromodiphenyl ethane, 十溴二苯乙烷). It is not on any of the Chinese control lists I checked, and none of them name it as an approved or recommended substitute for decaBDE either. The bigger risk is international. Norway has proposed DBDPE for listing under the Stockholm Convention, and the review committee took up the proposal in September 2026. If you're moving to it as a long-term replacement, plan for it possibly being restricted later.

China today

  • Key Controlled New Pollutants List (2023 edition, MEE Order No. 28): decaBDE is entry 3, alongside other entries such as short-chain chlorinated paraffins, dechlorane plus and HBCDD. DBDPE is not listed, and the text says nothing about substitutes (MEE, 重点管控新污染物清单（2023年版）).
  • Other MEE lists: I found no DBDPE entry in the Severely Restricted Toxic Chemicals List, the Priority Controlled Chemicals List batches, the MEE's Stockholm Convention implementation announcements, or the Prohibited Import/Export Goods Catalogues.
  • Inventory status (IECSC): I could not find DBDPE under its common or systematic English and Chinese names in my copy of the inventory. I did find the decaBDE entry there (serial no. 31104, CAS 1163-19-5) [8]. So I can't confirm here whether DBDPE is an existing substance or would need a new-substance notification before you make or import it in China. A search by its CAS number would settle that.

Stockholm Convention: where DBDPE stands

  • Not yet a POP: the Convention's POPs list has decaBDE (commercial mixture) in Annex A, but no entry for DBDPE [2].
  • The proposal: Norway proposed listing "decabromodiphenylethane (DBDPE) and its related substance, 1,1'-ethane-1,2-diylbisbenzene, brominated" in Annexes A, B and/or C. The proposal document is UNEP/POPS/POPRC.22/3, and the committee met on 21-25 September 2026 in Rome (Stockholm Convention, POPRC.22 overview).
  • Current stage: the UK government's request for information puts DBDPE at the risk profile stage. Information is due by 29 November 2026, and the committee may agree a draft risk profile at its October 2027 meeting. After that comes a risk management evaluation, and only then would the Conference of the Parties decide on listing (GOV.UK, Request for information: POPs 2026).
  • What this means for China: China's decaBDE ban came the same way. The Convention listed it, then MEE Announcement 2023 No. 20 put that listing into Chinese law [1]. DBDPE is still several steps away from a listing decision.

Approach: I searched China's Existing Chemical Substances Inventory, the MEE control lists and Stockholm implementation announcements, the customs prohibition catalogues and the Stockholm Convention POPs list. I then read the MEE's Key Controlled New Pollutants List and the official Stockholm Convention and UK government pages on the DBDPE proposal.

Q.03