MOFCOM and MOST issued Announcement No. 48 of 2026 on 16 October 2026, opening public consultation on proposed revisions to the Catalogue of Technologies Prohibited or Restricted from Export that would add 40 technologies across artificial intelligence, biomedicine and photovoltaics, while imposing interim pre-export registration on those technologies from the date of publication until the revised Catalogue takes effect.
Who this affects
- For exporters: Technology export operators must register exports of the listed technologies on the MOFCOM platform (https://ecomp.mofcom.gov.cn) before transfer, covering ownership transfers, outbound licenses and changes in ownership or actual control.
- For investors: AI large-model, agent, compute-cluster and information-processing technologies; cell and gene therapy, small-nucleic-acid and pathogen technologies; and polysilicon, wafer and cell manufacturing technologies (including related software and core equipment) fall under the interim registration regime.
- For counsel/compliance: Public comments on the proposed technical scope, indicators, control policy and facilitation measures close 15 November 2026; registration applies immediately to ongoing as well as new exports of the annexed technologies.
- For policymakers: The announcement implements the Foreign Trade Law and the Regulations on the Administration of Technology Import and Export by adding listed technologies to the Catalogue subject to public consultation and interim registration.
The read
The interim registration requirement takes effect on the day of the announcement and remains in force until the formal Catalogue revision is issued and implemented, creating an immediate compliance layer around the 40 technologies while the draft list remains open for comment through 15 November 2026. Open-source and published academic technologies in the AI field are excluded from the management scope; non-ownership-transfer outbound authorizations in biomedicine are eligible for automatic-license facilitation measures.
What was the action?
MOFCOM and MOST released Announcement No. 48 of 2026 soliciting public comments on draft revisions to the Catalogue of Technologies Prohibited or Restricted from Export that would add 40 technologies in artificial intelligence (23 items covering large models, agents, compute clusters and information processing), biomedicine (5 items covering cell and gene therapy, small nucleic acid drugs and pathogenic microorganisms) and photovoltaics (12 items covering polysilicon, wafer and cell manufacturing, including related software and core equipment), and simultaneously imposed interim pre-export registration on the listed technologies.
What’s the penalty / scope, and how is it set?
No monetary penalty is stated. From the date of publication until the revised Catalogue is formally issued and implemented, technology export operators must register any export of the technologies listed in the announcement’s annex on the MOFCOM unified business-system technology-trade management application (https://ecomp.mofcom.gov.cn). Registration covers transfers of technology ownership, outbound licenses of technology for use abroad, changes of ownership or actual control to an overseas party, and any other circumstances MOFCOM notifies. Already-commenced but incomplete exports fall within the registration requirement.
Who else is exposed?
Not specified in the record beyond technology export operators handling the annexed AI, biomedicine and photovoltaic technologies.
What happens next
Public comments on the proposed technical scope, indicators, control policy and facilitation measures may be submitted by email, fax or letter through 15 November 2026. The interim registration obligation remains in force until the formal Catalogue revision is published and takes effect.