EU - The Renewal of RoHS Exemption for the Use of Mercury in Non-linear Tri-band Phosphor Lamps

​By Decision 2010/571/EU, the European Commission granted an exemption for the use of mercury in non-linear tri-band phosphor lamps with tube diameter > 17 mm (e.g. T9) (‘the exemption’), which is now listed as exemption 2(b)(3) in Annex III to Directive 2011/65/EU. The exemption was to expire on July 21, 2016.

On December 19, 2014 and January 15, 2015, the Commission received two applications for renewal of the exemption, one of which was updated with additional information in January 2020. In accordance with Article 5(5) of Directive 2011/65/EU, an exemption remains valid until a decision on the renewal request has been taken.

After the evaluation, the Commission concluded that the substitution or elimination of mercury in the applications concerned is currently technically impracticable. It also concluded that the mercury concentration limit in the lamp categories covered by that exemption can be lowered from 15 mg to 10 mg per lamp.

Therefore, the Commission granted the renewal of the exemption, with a revised wording, setting out the limited scope of the exemption, for a period of 3 years. It is also going to collect further data related to the availability of substitutes for the specific lamp types covered by that exemption by given a period of 12 months.

​2(b)(3) Non-linear tri-band phosphor lamps with tube diameter > 17 mm (e.g. T9): 15 mg, 

• expires on​ February 24, 2023; 
• 10 mg may be used per lamp from 25 February 2023 until February 24, 2025