Holmium

Overview

Holmium is a bright, silvery heavy rare-earth metal, element 67. It was discovered in 1878, independently by researchers in Geneva and in Uppsala, and takes its name from Holmia, the Latin name for Stockholm.¹

Holmium has been described as having the strongest magnetic force of any element, albeit as a paramagnet. Its alloys are used in some magnets, it absorbs neutrons and so helps control chain reactions in nuclear reactors, and holmium-doped solid-state lasers are used in medicine, for example to vaporize tumors with little damage to surrounding tissue.¹

Holmium is on the US 2025 List of Critical Minerals and falls under the EU's heavy rare earths, which are listed as critical raw materials.²³

Where it comes from

Holmium is a minor component of monazite and bastnaesite. It is extracted from ores processed for yttrium and separated by ion exchange and solvent extraction.¹ The US government records it as a potential by-product of other rare earths, iron ore and heavy mineral sands.²

The yttrium-rich ion-adsorption clays of southern China are the richest source. In the Longnan deposit in Jiangxi province, where yttrium makes up about 65% of contained rare-earth oxide (REO), holmium is about 1.6%; at Xinfeng and Xunwu it is about 0.7% and 0.3%. In Sichuan's Dechang bastnaesite it is only about 0.05%.⁴ The USGS describes the South China clays as supplying virtually all of the heavy rare earths reaching world markets.⁵ Similar clays in Myanmar's Kachin State, mined by in-situ leaching, have become a major source of heavy-rare-earth feed for China.⁶

The European Commission found China to be the main global processor of holmium, with 100% of supply, and the source of 100% of the EU's supply.⁷ The USGS does not publish holmium production by country. For all rare earths combined, world mine output was an estimated 390,000 t REO in 2025, of which China produced about 270,000 t.⁸ The chart covers all rare earths, not holmium alone.

• China270,000 t · 69%
• United States51,000 t · 13%
• Australia29,000 t · 7%
• Burma22,000 t · 6%
• Thailand4,800 t · 1%
• India2,900 t · <1%
• Madagascar2,700 t · <1%
• Russia2,600 t · <1%
• Other countries4,310 t · 1%

Covers all rare earths combined, in rare-earth-oxide terms; USGS does not publish holmium output by country. World total is the USGS rounded figure; country figures sum to 389,310 t. USGS estimated Burma, Thailand and Madagascar from Chinese import data. Source: Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Rare Earths

What it is used for

• Magnets. Holmium alloys are used in some magnets.¹ The USGS lists high-strength magnets, industrial and medical lasers, and medical and scientific equipment among the main uses of heavy rare earths.⁹
• Lasers. Holmium-doped solid-state lasers are used in surgery, including the treatment of early-stage bladder cancer.¹
• Nuclear. Holmium absorbs neutrons and is used to help control reactor chain reactions.¹
• Coloring. Holmium oxide is used to color cubic zirconia.¹

China's October 2025 export control list gives a picture of holmium's specialist applications: besides metal, alloys, oxide and compounds, it named holmium-containing permanent-magnet, crystal, magnetic-refrigeration and magnetostrictive materials.¹⁰

Grades and forms

Holmium is traded mainly as oxide, in small volumes. Metal and holmium-copper, magnesium-holmium and holmium-iron alloys are made further down the chain.¹⁰

Trade and policy

The United States relies on imports for all of its heavy-rare-earth compounds and metals, and shipping records show that all holmium compounds and metals imported in 2021–24 came from China.⁹

The suspension took effect on 7 November 2025, the day before Announcement No. 57 was due to start, so its holmium controls have not been applied; the suspension runs until 10 November 2026.¹⁰¹¹ China's April 2025 controls on seven other medium and heavy rare earths were not suspended.⁹

This section is factual background, not legal or trade-compliance advice.

Recycling and substitution

Only small quantities of heavy rare earths are recovered, mainly from permanent magnets.⁹ Substitutes for heavy rare earths are available for some applications but are generally less effective; light rare earths can substitute for heavy rare earths in several applications.⁹

Sources

1. Holmium: element information, properties and uses. Royal Society of Chemistry, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷

2. Final 2025 List of Critical Minerals. Federal Register, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩ ↩²

3. Regulation (EU) 2024/1252 (Critical Raw Materials Act). EUR-Lex, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩

4. 2020 Minerals Yearbook: Rare Earths. U.S. Geological Survey, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩

5. Rare Earth Element Accumulation Processes Resulting in High-Value Metal Enrichments in Regolith. U.S. Geological Survey, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩

6. Myanmar: the soft underbelly of China's rare earth dominance. Asialink, University of Melbourne, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩

7. Study on the Critical Raw Materials for the EU 2023: Final Report. European Commission, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩

8. Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Rare Earths. U.S. Geological Survey, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩

9. Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Rare Earths (Heavy). U.S. Geological Survey, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

10. Announcement No. 57 of 2025 on implementing export control on some medium and heavy rare earth related items (in Chinese). Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

11. Announcement No. 70 of 2025 suspending Announcements No. 55–58, 61 and 62 of 2025 (in Chinese). Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩ ↩²