China / MIIT / RoHS

China RoHS becomes mandatory — GB 26572-2025 effective 1st August 2027

GB 26572-2025, released 1st August 2025, replaces China's voluntary RoHS standard with a mandatory one.
It restricts 10 hazardous substances, up from 6.
Full effect begins 1st August 2027; the transition rule for stock already in the market is not yet confirmed from the primary text.

Last updated 22nd August 2026 · By Vas Parshin and Anabel Amar

China RoHS GB 26572-2025 — Mandatory Standard, Effective 1st August 2027

1st Aug 2027GB 26572-2025 becomes mandatory

10restricted substances, up from 6

Opentransition rule for existing stock, to be confirmed

What actually changed

On 1st August 2025, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) officially released GB 26572-2025, "Requirements for Restricted Use of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Products". It replaces GB/T 26572-2011 — the "T" marks a recommended, non-mandatory standard, which is why China RoHS compliance has until now largely been a voluntary or contractually-driven exercise for most exporters. GB 26572-2025 drops the "T" and becomes a mandatory national standard, taking effect on 1st August 2027 after a two-year transition period from its release date.

A circuit board under a magnifying inspection lamp — Illustration: inspecting electronic assemblies.

Four new substances, aligned with the EU

The restricted-substance count rises from 6 to 10. The four additions are all phthalates — DBP (dibutyl phthalate), BBP (benzyl butyl phthalate), DEHP (bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate) and DIBP (diisobutyl phthalate) — each capped at 0.1% by mass in a homogeneous material. That is the same substance set and the same threshold already restricted under EU RoHS (Directive 2011/65/EU as amended), which means a product already compliant with EU RoHS's substance list is closer to GB 26572-2025 compliance than a product tested only against the old 6-substance China standard. It does not mean automatic compliance — testing, documentation and labeling still need to be run against the Chinese standard specifically.

The two dates that matter

1st August 2027 is when GB 26572-2025 becomes mandatory for products manufactured or imported into China from that date forward. For anything manufactured or imported before that date, the transition rule is in the standard's own text, which we have not confirmed from the primary source; one secondary summary says such products may keep being sold and used, but we do not rely on it. Check the clause before planning sell-through of stock already in a supply chain aimed at the Chinese market.

Who this actually lands on

Any manufacturer or exporter placing electrical or electronic products on the Chinese market — directly, or through a China-based contract manufacturer or distributor — is affected, not just companies headquartered there. Two groups face the sharpest transition: exporters who have treated China RoHS as a soft, contractually-driven check (since it was voluntary) now need to run it as a hard compliance gate on the same footing as EU RoHS or UK requirements; and anyone with existing China-bound inventory needs to check the standard's transition clause, not just the 2027 production cutoff.

Questions

What is GB 26572-2025?

GB 26572-2025 is China's first mandatory national RoHS standard, "Requirements for Restricted Use of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Products". It was officially released on 1st August 2025 and replaces the previous standard, GB/T 26572-2011, which was voluntary (the "T" denotes a recommended, non-mandatory standard). GB 26572-2025 takes effect on 1st August 2027, after a two-year transition period.

What changed in the substance list?

The number of restricted substances rises from 6 to 10. The four newly added substances are phthalates — DBP (dibutyl phthalate), BBP (benzyl butyl phthalate), DEHP (bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate) and DIBP (diisobutyl phthalate) — each capped at 0.1% by mass in a homogeneous material, the same threshold and substance set already restricted under EU RoHS. This brings China RoHS's scope in line with the EU regime for the first time.

When do manufacturers actually need to comply?

GB 26572-2025 becomes mandatory on 1st August 2027 for products manufactured or imported into China from that date. What happens to products already manufactured or imported before that date depends on the standard's transition clause, which we have not confirmed from the primary text, so we state no sell-through deadline.

Does this replace or sit alongside the China RoHS Management Methods?

GB 26572-2025 sits alongside China's existing RoHS management framework (the 2016 Management Methods and its own products catalogue, which governs labeling and the voluntary certification/self-declaration process). GB 26572-2025 replaces the substance-restriction technical standard that underpins that framework — moving it from voluntary (GB/T) to mandatory (GB) status and expanding the restricted-substance list — rather than replacing the management system itself.

Where we fit

Exporting into China alongside the EU, UK, US, Korea or India usually means adding a separate substance-restriction check against GB 26572-2025 to whatever material-compliance review already covers those markets. We fold China RoHS into the same market-access review we run for the other jurisdictions we cover, so it's one process per product, not a separate one to track per country.