China withdraws non-acceptance of COP-5 Annex A and B amendments; amendments enter into force for China (and apply to Hong Kong SAR and Macao SAR)

A UN Depositary notification states that China withdrew its previous notification of non-acceptance of the Minamata Convention amendments to Annexes A and B adopted by COP-5 (Decision MC-5/4). As a result, the amendments entered into force for China on 2 March 2026 (and are stated to apply to Hong Kong SAR and Macao SAR). This changes the applicability timeline of the COP-5 Annex A/B controls for China/HK/Macao and is a key compliance trigger for entities operating in or supplying these jurisdictions.