China's Critical Mineral Export Controls: Gallium, Germanium, Antimony, Graphite and Rare Earths Timeline
Since 2023 China has built a licensing system around the minerals and metals it dominates. The controls started with gallium and germanium and now cover rare earths, graphite, battery materials and the technology used to process them. This page lists each measure by date, notes what is suspended and what still applies, and gives a status table at the end.
Last updated: 15 September 2026.
Why these minerals matter
China leads in refining for most strategic minerals. The International Energy Agency found China was the top refiner for 19 of 20 key strategic minerals, with an average share around 70%. For rare earths the IEA put China at about 61% of mined supply and 91% of refining in 2024. In gallium, a by-product of aluminium refining, China produces nearly all of the world’s primary supply.
A licence requirement lets Beijing slow shipments, ask for end-use details and refuse particular buyers without formally banning anything. That is often enough to move prices and create shortages outside China.
2023
1 August 2023: Gallium and germanium
Announced on 3 July, these were the first modern mineral controls. Gallium is used in compound semiconductors for radar, LEDs and power electronics. Germanium goes into fibre optics, infrared optics and some solar cells. Exports fell to zero in the first month while firms applied for licences, then resumed at lower levels.
1 December 2023: Graphite
China added certain high-purity and high-strength graphite products, key inputs for battery anodes. The measure followed a round of US chip controls in October.
21 December 2023: Processing technology ban
Beijing added rare earth extraction, separation and magnet-making technology to its catalogue of technologies banned from export. The goal was to stop other countries buying Chinese know-how to build rival supply chains.
2024
15 September 2024: Antimony
Antimony is used in ammunition, flame retardants and some solar glass. Controls covered ores, metal, oxides and related smelting technology.
3 December 2024: US ban on gallium, germanium and antimony
A day after a major US chip control package, China banned exports of these three minerals and superhard materials to the United States in principle, and tightened end-use checks on graphite shipped there.
2025
4 February 2025: Five more metals
China added tungsten, tellurium, bismuth, molybdenum and indium, timed as a response to new US tariffs.
4 April 2025: Seven rare earths and magnets
The first rare earth licensing covered samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium and yttrium, along with magnets containing them. Dysprosium and terbium are essential for high-temperature permanent magnets in electric motors and defence systems. Exports of rare earth magnets dropped sharply in the following weeks and several car plants outside China paused lines. This April regime was never suspended and still applies.
9 October 2025: The big expansion
A package of announcements added holmium, erbium, thulium, europium and ytterbium. It also covered lithium battery and graphite anode materials, processing and recycling equipment, and the underlying technologies.
The most significant part was extraterritorial. Foreign-made products containing Chinese-origin rare earths above a small share of value, or made with Chinese rare earth technology, would need Chinese export licences. That mirrored the US foreign direct product rule. Exports for advanced chipmaking and military uses faced case-by-case or denial.
November 2025: The truce suspensions
After the Trump–Xi meeting in Busan on 30 October, China’s Commerce Ministry issued two suspensions. Announcement No. 70 paused the 9 October measures until 10 November 2026. Announcement No. 72 suspended the ban on gallium, germanium and antimony exports to the United States until 27 November 2026.
Neither step removed the underlying licensing. The 2023 and 2024 controls, the February 2025 metals and the April 2025 rare earths all still require licences.
2026
January 2026: Restrictions on Japan
After a dispute over Japanese statements about Taiwan, China restricted dual-use exports to Japan. Rare earths were caught up in the measures, and Chinese shipments of dysprosium and terbium to Japan reportedly stopped from January.
14–15 May 2026: Beijing summit
Rare earths were a central topic when President Trump visited Beijing. No formal minerals agreement or truce extension was announced. The White House said China had agreed to address US concerns over shortages of yttrium, scandium and neodymium.
22 June 2026: US rare earth firms listed
China added 10 US companies in defence, drones and minerals to its export control list, including MP Materials and USA Rare Earth. Chinese firms may not sell them dual-use items, and the ban extends to third-country companies passing on Chinese-origin goods. Beijing framed it as a response to a US defence department list naming Chinese companies. MP Materials runs Mountain Pass in California, the only operating US rare earth mine, and the US government is its largest shareholder.
Status table
| Measure | Start | Status as of September 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Gallium and germanium licensing | Aug 2023 | In force |
| Graphite licensing | Dec 2023 | In force |
| Rare earth processing technology export ban | Dec 2023 | In force |
| Antimony licensing | Sep 2024 | In force |
| Ban on gallium, germanium and antimony to US | Dec 2024 | Suspended to 27 Nov 2026 |
| Tungsten, tellurium, bismuth, molybdenum, indium | Feb 2025 | In force |
| Seven rare earths and magnets | Apr 2025 | In force |
| October 2025 rare earth, battery and extraterritorial package | Oct 2025 | Suspended to 10 Nov 2026 |
| Dual-use restrictions on Japan | Jan 2026 | In force |
| Export control listing of 10 US firms | Jun 2026 | In force |
Responses outside China
The US has taken equity stakes in domestic producers, including MP Materials and USA Rare Earth, and hosted a Critical Minerals Ministerial in February 2026. At their June 2026 summit in Évian, G7 leaders backed a Critical Minerals Resilience and Production Alliance with a target of cutting dependence on any single outside supplier for rare earths and permanent magnets to under 60% by 2030. Japan has begun exploring rare earth mud on the deep seabed inside its exclusive economic zone.
New mines and refineries take years to build. Analysts expect China’s grip on heavy rare earths such as dysprosium and terbium to last well into the 2030s.
Key dates ahead
The two November 2026 expiry dates are the ones to watch. If the suspensions lapse, the October 2025 extraterritorial rules return on 10 November and the US-specific gallium, germanium and antimony ban returns on 27 November. The US Affiliates Rule on export controls is due to come back in the same window, on 10 November 2026.