Hello, this is Ryuta Hamamoto from TIMEWELL. Manufacturing compliance teams keep telling me the same thing: "China's export control is opaque, and I cannot see the whole map."
Honestly, the map is less mysterious once you stop treating China as a special case. The system is a five-layer hierarchy, with the Export Control Law (effective December 2020) as the basic law and the Dual-Use Export Control Regulations (effective December 1, 2024) as the lower-level comprehensive rule. Same kind of stack as the U.S. EAR and Japan's FEFTA. Below I put that stack next to the United States, Japan, and the EU, and walk through the skeleton Japanese companies with Chinese subsidiaries, or companies that procure dual-use items from China, should grasp first.
A fill-in screening sheet for China-related transactions: Screen one transaction at a time against China's Export Control Law and the Dual-Use Items Export Control Regulations, the announcements covering critical minerals (gallium, germanium, graphite, antimony, tungsten, rare earths, helium and others), and the four counterparty-list systems (Control List, Watch List, Unreliable Entity List, countermeasure list). It is a procedure for what to verify before you ship, not a roster of who is listed, so the five practical steps in this article can be dropped straight into your internal review flow. Being listed is a regulatory designation, not a judgment about the company. → Download the China-Related Transactions Export-Control Screening Sheet (2026) (Free. Your company name and work email address are required.)
What You Will Get From This Article
- The five-layer pyramid of Chinese export control (Constitution → statute → regulations → departmental rules → announcements)
- Role division between the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) and the General Administration of Customs (GACC)
- Three license types — single, general, and registration-based — and the application process
- Organization of controlled items (dual-use, rare earths, semiconductors, gallium, and others)
- Side-by-side comparison with the U.S. EAR, Japan's FEFTA, and EU 2021/821
- Impact by three patterns (Chinese subsidiary / buyer side / technology transfer) and five practical steps
Three Terms to Learn First
Three terms make Chinese export-control texts and announcements much easier to read.
Export Control Law of the PRC — the Basic Law
The Export Control Law of the People's Republic of China was promulgated by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on October 17, 2020 and took effect on December 1 of the same year. It is China's basic export-control statute, the counterpart of the U.S. Export Control Reform Act (ECRA, 2018), Japan's Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act (1949), and EU Regulation 2021/821.
It sets a framework covering dual-use goods, technology, and services, military goods, nuclear-related items, and other items related to "national security and interests." What Japanese companies touch day to day is mainly the lower Dual-Use Export Control Regulations.
Dual-Use Items (两用物项) — Defining the Controlled Object
Dual-use items are goods, technology, and services convertible to both military and civilian use. Defined in Article 2 of the Export Control Law and Article 2 of the Dual-Use Export Control Regulations, they specifically include:
- Goods
- Technology (design drawings, manufacturing know-how, and similar)
- Services (technical guidance, training, and similar)
- Data (design data and similar)
Conceptually the same architecture as "dual-use items" under the U.S. EAR and the EU Dual-Use Regulation, and "specified goods / specified technology" under Japan's FEFTA.
Control List (出口管制清单) — Item Classification System
The Dual-Use Export Control List, published November 15, 2024 and effective December 1, is the roster of controlled items. It uses a five-digit code system similar to the U.S. ECCN (Export Control Classification Number).
Categories run 0–9 (ten types), nearly the same layout as the U.S. CCL and the Wassenaar Arrangement.
| Category | Content |
|---|---|
| 0 | Nuclear-related |
| 1 | Special materials and related equipment |
| 2 | Materials processing |
| 3 | Electronics |
| 4 | Computers |
| 5 | Communications and information security |
| 6 | Sensors and lasers |
| 7 | Navigation and avionics |
| 8 | Marine |
| 9 | Aerospace and propulsion |
Five-digit coding makes control determination easier to cross-check against the U.S. EAR and the EU Dual-Use Regulation. Classifying "electronics item 4A001" in China is now closer to how you already read U.S. ECCNs and EU item numbers.
Legal Pyramid — Understand It as Five Layers
Chinese export control is organized from upper to lower law. Like the U.S. EAR and Japan's FEFTA, it is a multi-layer stack: upper law, lower rules, then individual announcements.
[Layer 1] Constitution
National security and public-interest framework
↓
[Layer 2] Statutes (enacted by the NPC Standing Committee)
- Export Control Law of the PRC (2020)
- Related: National Security Law, Data Security Law, Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law, etc.
↓
[Layer 3] Administrative regulations (enacted by the State Council)
- Dual-Use Export Control Regulations (effective December 1, 2024)
- Monitored Chemicals Management Regulations
- Military Goods Export Control Regulations (nuclear, missiles, etc. on a separate track)
↓
[Layer 4] Departmental rules and management measures (MOFCOM and other competent authorities)
- Guidelines for Completing Dual-Use Export License Applications (2025)
- Internal Compliance Guidelines (2021; revised 2023)
↓
[Layer 5] Announcements and notices (specifying individual items, countries, companies)
- Dual-Use Export Control List (revised each late December)
- Control List / Watch List addition announcements
- Individual announcements for specific items (gallium, germanium, rare earths, etc.)
Meaning of the December 1, 2024 Effective Date
With the Dual-Use Export Control Regulations, the following older instruments were abolished or consolidated:
- Measures for the Administration of Dual-Use Items and Technologies Import/Export Licenses (2005)
- Measures for Export Control of Certain Civilian Chemicals
- Nuclear Export Control Regulations (in part)
- Missile and Related Items and Technology Export Control Regulations (in part)
Dual-use architecture now reads as Export Control Law, then Dual-Use Export Control Regulations, then individual announcements. Structurally similar to the U.S. EAR (ECRA, EAR 15 CFR Parts 730–774, CCL / Entity List) and the EU (Regulation 2021/821, Delegated Regulation, Annex I updates).
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Competent Authorities and Application Process
MOFCOM and GACC
Chinese export control is mainly split between two central authorities.
| Authority | Chinese name | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Ministry of Commerce | 商务部 (MOFCOM) | Lead export-control authority. License review, announcements, list designations |
| General Administration of Customs | 海关总署 | Central customs body. License verification at export, detention |
This is the same division of labor as BIS and CBP in the United States, METI and Customs in Japan, and the European Commission and member-state authorities in the EU. MOFCOM decides "whether to license"; GACC checks "whether the license is in order at actual export."
Nuclear and missile-related items have parallel competent bodies, but dual-use has been unified under a MOFCOM window.
Three License Types
Chapter III of the Dual-Use Export Control Regulations provides three license types.
| Type | Chinese | Content | Validity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single license | 单项许可 | One-time export of specified items to a specified end user | Within 1 year |
| General license | 通用许可 | Multiple exports to one or more end users (conditional) | Within 3 years |
| Registration-based export certificate | 信息登记 | Register information with MOFCOM before export and obtain a certificate | Per shipment |
Functionally corresponds to individual / general / special general bulk licenses under Japan's FEFTA, and individual licenses / license exceptions under the U.S. EAR.
Application Flow
A typical export-license application flow:
[1] Control determination (exporter confirms Dual-Use List relevance)
↓
[2] Obtain end-user and end-use certificates
(Chinese government seals may be required)
↓
[3] File export-license application with MOFCOM
(attach export contract, technical materials, end-use proof, etc.)
↓
[4] MOFCOM review (standard review period in Article 17 of the Regulations)
※ Watch List targets are not bound by the review-period limit
↓
[5] License issuance (single / general / registration-based)
↓
[6] Customs clearance at GACC (license verification)
Important 2024 regulation changes include:
- Abolition of the exporter pre-registration system. Individual license applications can be filed without prior registration.
- Introduction of five-digit codes, which improves international consistency of control determination.
- End-user certificates made explicit (Article 14 and related of the Regulations).
- Extraterritorial application added in Article 49 on reexport and transfer.
Controlled Items — the Part That Moves by Individual Announcement
The Dual-Use Export Control List is updated annually. Separately, MOFCOM announcements keep adding individual items. Since 2023 especially, specific minerals, materials, and technologies have come under control in sequence.
| Timing | Items | Measure |
|---|---|---|
| July 2023 | Gallium, germanium | Export licensing |
| October 2023 | Graphite | Export licensing |
| August 2024 | Antimony, superhard materials | Export licensing |
| December 2024 | Gallium, germanium, antimony, etc. | Export ban toward the U.S. / stricter U.S.-bound review for graphite |
| February 2025 | Tungsten, tellurium | Export licensing |
| April 2025 | Medium/heavy rare earths | Export licensing |
| October 2025 | Rare-earth-related technology and know-how / extraterritorial application (first Article 49 application) | Foreign products with 0.1% or more Chinese-origin rare earths also in scope |
| November 2025 – November 2026 | Major rare earths and battery materials above | One-year temporary suspension (November 7, 2025 – November 10, 2026) |
One caveat I keep repeating to teams: the November 2025 temporary suspension is not a rewrite of the legal architecture. It is an operational measure that time-limits and eases license obligations for specific items. Post-suspension treatment is undetermined. Keep watching MOFCOM announcements.
Other Controlled Domains
- Commercial cryptography: Commercial Cryptography Export Control List (joint MOFCOM / State Cryptography Administration / GACC)
- Monitored chemicals: Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC)-related
- Military goods: Military Goods Export Control Regulations (separate track)
Comparison with the U.S. EAR, Japan's FEFTA, and EU 2021/821
Rather than treating Chinese export control as "special and opaque," place it as one of the regimes each jurisdiction has built on its own security outlook. The structural commonalities show up faster that way.
| Item | China (Export Control Law + Regulations) | United States (EAR) | Japan (FEFTA) | EU (Reg. 2021/821) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upper law | Export Control Law (2020) | ECRA (2018) | Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act (1949) | Regulation 2021/821 (2021) |
| Lower rules | Dual-Use Export Control Regulations (2024) | EAR (15 CFR Parts 730–774) | Export Trade Control Order, Foreign Exchange Order, Goods Ordinance | Member-state implementing laws |
| Competent authorities | MOFCOM, GACC | Commerce BIS, Customs | METI, Customs | European Commission + member-state authorities |
| Item classification codes | 5-digit codes (ECCN-like) | ECCN (5 characters) | Goods Ordinance item numbers | EU Dual-Use List numbers |
| License types | Single, general, registration (3 types) | Individual licenses, license exceptions | Individual, general, special general bulk | Individual, general (intra-EU / international), global |
| Extraterritorial reach | Introduced in Article 49 (from 2024) | Direct product rule, FDPR | Limited (territorial principle as default) | Limited |
| End-use management | Ban on export for military end use / end users | MEU / MIEU | Catch-all | End-use controls |
| Entity controls | Control List, Watch List | Entity List, SDN List, Unverified List | Foreign User List | Sanctions lists |
| Penalty ceiling | Up to CNY 5 million or 10× illegal sales | Up to $300,000 per violation or 2× transaction value | Up to JPY 1 billion or 5× transaction value | Varies by member state |
Commonalities and Differences
Commonalities
- Dual-use items as the main controlled object
- Two-layer structure of list controls + end-use / end-user controls
- Awareness of alignment with international regimes (Wassenaar, NSG, AG, MTCR)
- Criminal penalties included for violations
Differences
- Extraterritorial reach: broadest under the U.S. EAR; China first introduced it in the 2024 regulations; Japan and the EU are limited
- Penalty scale: both case history and maximums are largest in the United States
- Public transparency: the United States publishes Entity Lists and similar in detail; China is still building out stepwise
- Administrative culture: Japan emphasizes dialogue with industry; the United States emphasizes investigation and enforcement
My read, shared with a lot of the legal-practice community: in the roughly five years since the 2020 basic law, China's system has reached a level that stands alongside the U.S. EAR and EU regulations as a full regime you have to manage, not a footnote.
Penalties — Up to CNY 5 Million or 10× Illegal Sales
Chapter V of the Dual-Use Export Control Regulations ("Legal Liability") provides administrative and criminal responsibility.
Administrative Penalties
| Violation type | Penalty |
|---|---|
| Unlicensed export (illegal sales ≥ CNY 500,000) | Fine of 5–10× illegal sales; confiscation of illegal gains |
| Unlicensed export (illegal sales < CNY 500,000) | Fine up to CNY 5 million (about $700,000) |
| Reporting-duty violations (forwarders, etc.) | Warning or fine |
| Business suspension | On serious violation: order to suspend operations; revocation of export qualifications |
| Personal liability | Fines on directly responsible persons; lifetime ban from export business |
Criminal Responsibility
Where unlicensed export constitutes smuggling, disclosure of state secrets, or similar crimes, criminal responsibility under the Criminal Law is pursued. Conduct threatening national security or interests can face still heavier disposition under related laws.
Limits on Reapplication
Companies and individuals that receive criminal disposition cannot thereafter obtain general licenses or registration-based export certificates, under the Regulations. For long-term business continuity, "loss of reapplication authority" often has more impact than the administrative fine amount itself.
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Three Impact Patterns for Japanese Companies
Chinese export control reaches Japanese companies through roughly three paths. Which path you sit on changes what to prioritize.
Pattern 1: Japanese Companies with Sites in China (Chinese Subsidiaries)
When a Chinese subsidiary exports dual-use items out of China, the Dual-Use Export Control Regulations apply directly.
- Export to the parent (Japan HQ) also requires a license if dual-use
- Taking technology and know-how obtained in China out of the country is regulated as technology export
- A "deemed export" (视同出口) concept can cover technology provision to foreigners inside China
From a group-compliance seat at Japan HQ, a monthly or quarterly grasp of Chinese subsidiaries' license status is the usual baseline.
Pattern 2: Japanese Companies Procuring from China (Buyer Side)
Japanese companies that procure dual-use items from China are not direct regulatory targets, but they still carry supply-chain stop risk.
- Rare-earth and semiconductor-materials controls from April 2025 onward can stall procurement when Chinese export licenses do not issue
- Cooperation in preparing and submitting end-use certificates becomes necessary
- Supply-chain visibility and alternative sources become live issues
Especially for products containing specific minerals such as rare earths, gallium, germanium, graphite, and tungsten, Chinese-origin content should be visible at Bill of Materials (BOM) level.
Pattern 3: Technology Transfer and Technical Alliances
Technology provision from a Japanese company to a Chinese legal person can become a Chinese "deemed export" target.
- Japan-to-China technology license contracts require the Chinese recipient to determine dual-use relevance
- Technology re-transfer from China to third countries is a candidate for extraterritorial application (Article 49)
- Joint development, secondment, research commission: form matters less than "where the technology goes"
February 2026 Control List and Watch List Announcements
In February 2026, MOFCOM placed a total of 40 Japanese companies and organizations on the following two lists. Stated as fact only; list placement is a regulatory designation under Chinese law, not a moral judgment on any company:
| List | Count | Measure |
|---|---|---|
| Control List (管控名单) | 20 companies / organizations | Dual-use export ban; third-party supply also banned |
| Watch List (关注名单) | 20 companies / organizations | General license and registration-based filing unavailable. Individual license applications require additional risk-assessment reports and end-use certificates. No review-period limit |
"No review-period limit" on the Watch List is often read as de facto indefinite review. Functionally it lines up with the U.S. Entity List, Japan's Foreign User List, and EU sanctions lists.
Five Practical Steps
Five steps Japanese companies can start as of May to respond to Chinese export control.
Step 1: Build a Transaction Map
Inventory dual-use-relevant transactions across three paths: export from Chinese subsidiaries, procurement from China, and technology transfer to Chinese legal persons. Confirm at BOM level whether Chinese-origin items and parts are included.
Step 2: Control Determination Against the Dual-Use List (Five-Digit Codes)
Determine control status for items you handle against the Dual-Use Export Control List effective December 2024. Because the five-digit code system resembles U.S. ECCNs, many items can be inferred from ECCN. CISTEC provisional translations are widely used as Japanese confirmation materials.
Step 3: Counterparty List Screening
Regularly confirm that counterparties and end users do not appear on MOFCOM Control List and Watch List publications. The working standard is integrated four-jurisdiction screening together with the U.S. SDN List, EU sanctions lists, and Japan's Foreign User List.
Step 4: End-User Certificate Operating Flow
When a Chinese subsidiary files a license application, submission of end-user and end-use certificates is explicit under Article 14 and related of the Regulations. When Japan HQ is the end user, a standard parent-company certificate format smooths the subsidiary's application.
Step 5: Annual Review Workflow
The Dual-Use Export Control List is revised each late December. MOFCOM announcements also add and amend individual items through the year. Assign regular check sources inside the company (MOFCOM official, JETRO Beijing / Shanghai, CISTEC, and others) and build an annual review workflow.
Common Misconceptions / FAQ
Q1. Which is stricter — China's Export Control Law or the U.S. EAR?
There is no single answer. Extraterritorial reach (direct product rule, FDPR) and accumulated enforcement history are broader under the U.S. EAR. China, meanwhile, has been building the system quickly through the 2024 regulations and 2025 rare-earth controls (first Article 49 application). The practical answer is simpler: you need both compliance systems, not one or the other.
Q2. If we obtain a Chinese export license, can we freely handle the items inside Japan?
No. A Chinese export license is a Chinese-law procedure. On the import side (Japan), confirmation under FEFTA and related notices is still required. If U.S.-origin technology is included, EAR reexport controls also apply. Multi-jurisdiction compliance is the premise.
Q3. If a Chinese subsidiary exports parts to Japan HQ, is a license required?
Yes, if dual-use. The Chinese subsidiary, as Chinese exporter, must obtain an export license from MOFCOM under the Dual-Use Export Control Regulations. Japan HQ as importer often submits end-user certificates.
Q4. What is the current status of rare-earth controls?
After significant strengthening in October 2025 under MOFCOM Announcement No. 61 and related (extraterritorial application; technology and know-how also controlled), license obligations for covered items have been temporarily suspended for one year from November 7, 2025 to November 10, 2026. Post-suspension treatment is undetermined. The legal architecture itself was not relaxed; this is an operational measure.
Q5. What happens if we are placed on the Watch List?
General licenses and registration-based filing become unavailable; individual license applications are required. Applications must include a risk-assessment report and a written statement that items will not be used in ways that enhance military capability. The standard review-period limit under Article 17 of the Regulations is also lifted, so review can lengthen. Placement on the Watch List is a regulatory status. It is not, by itself, a finding of wrongdoing.
Latest Developments as of July 2026
Chinese export control, especially individual-announcement items such as rare earths, is also shaping Japanese responses. The 16th Japan–India annual summit on July 2, 2026 produced a joint declaration on economic-security cooperation in five fields: semiconductors, critical minerals (rare earths), clean energy, ICT (subsea cables), and pharmaceuticals, with investment on the order of about 2 trillion yen (Japan–India summit joint press release (Prime Minister's Office of Japan, July 2026)). Chinese export control itself has not changed here, but diversification of critical-mineral sources is getting more concrete. Licensing and individual announcements on the Chinese side, and sourcing diversification on the Japanese side, are two faces of the same problem. Track both. Related frameworks are in the 2026 Japan–India summit and economic security.
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Summary
If you only do one thing on Monday, map which of the three impact paths your company actually sits on. The rest of the skeleton:
- Chinese export control is a five-layer pyramid: Export Control Law (2020), Dual-Use Export Control Regulations (2024), then individual announcements
- Competent authorities split work between MOFCOM and GACC, same basic architecture as U.S. BIS + Customs and Japan METI + Customs
- Three license types: single, general, registration-based. End-user certificate submission was made explicit in the 2024 regulations
- Controlled objects include the Dual-Use List plus individual-announcement items such as gallium, germanium, and rare earths
- Japanese impact runs through Chinese subsidiaries, the buyer side, and technology transfer. BOM-level item grasp and list screening are the base
- Run the U.S. EAR, Japan's FEFTA, and EU 2021/821 in parallel. Integrated four-jurisdiction management is the realistic target
Related Articles
- China Rare Earth Export Control Map 2025–2026
- EU Dual-Use Regulation 2025 Amendment (2025/2003) — New 500 Series
- China–Japan Export Control 2026 — Regulatory Trends on Both Sides
If You Are Unsure You Can Handle This In-House
Checking the same item across four jurisdictions at once (China, the United States, the EU, and Japan) hits human limits fast. You need a cross-cutting grasp of five-digit dual-use list codes, entity controls (Control List, Watch List, Entity List, Foreign User List), extraterritorial rules, and end-user certificate operations.
TRAFEED (formerly ZEROCK ExCHECK) uses a knowledge graph of over 200 million nodes spanning papers, patents, researchers, legal entities, and regulatory lists to visualize Chinese, U.S., EU, and Japanese regulation end to end. METI-aligned control-determination support, multilingual capability, and domestic-server operation in the AWS Tokyo region help keep confidential information secure.
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References
Chinese Government Official
- MOFCOM (English portal)
- General Administration of Customs of the PRC
- State Council white paper, "China's Export Controls" (December 2021)
Japanese Public Bodies and Industry Associations
- JETRO Beijing Office, "Dual-Use Export Control Regulations" (January 2025)
- JETRO Shanghai Office, "Overview of China's Export Control Law" (August 2021)
- CISTEC, "China Export Control Law"
- CISTEC, "Dual-Use Export Control Regulations Provisional Translation"
- CISTEC, "Dual-Use Export Control List Provisional Translation"
- CISTEC, "Guidelines for Completing Dual-Use Export License Applications" (April 2025)
- JETRO Business Brief, "China Places 40 Japanese Companies and Organizations on Export Control Lists" (February 2026)
Major Law-Firm Commentary
- Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu, "On the Implementation of the Dual-Use Export Control Regulations" (December 2024)
- TMI Associates, "Dual-Use Export Control Regulations and Dual-Use Export Control List"
- TMI Associates, "China's Addition of Japanese Companies to Export Control Lists and Practical Response" (2026)
- Mori Hamada & Matsumoto, "INTERNATIONAL TRADE LAW BULLETIN"
- King & Wood Mallesons, "Key Points of the Dual-Use Export Control Regulations"
English Commentary Materials
- Covington & Burling: China Promulgates New Dual-Use Export Control Regulations
- Hogan Lovells: China issues the regulations on the export control of dual use items
- Orrick: China Issues Regulation on Export Control of Dual Use Items
- White & Case: China imposes extraterritorial jurisdiction and a 50% Rule
- Jones Day: China Imposes Extraterritorial Export Control Measures Over Rare Earth Items (October 2025)
- CSET, Georgetown: Regulation of the PRC on Export Controls for Dual-Use Items (English translation)
- China Law Translate: Export Control Law of the PRC (2020) (English translation)
