Bactrocera tau (Walker) is one of the most harmful pests to fruits and vegetables. To counteract this pest, the development of phytosanitary treatment is required to comply with the pest regulation requirements of certain countries. This study investigated the toxicity of phosphine fumigation against B. tau under low temperature conditions. Different growth stages (eggs and instars) of B. tau were exposed to 1.07 mg/liter phosphine for 1-10 d at 5 degrees C, and compared with unfumigated flies at 5 degrees C. The results showed that tolerance to cold treatment alone or phosphine fumigation at low temperatures generally increased with the stage of insect development. However, eggs incubated for 12 h at 25 degrees C represented the most tolerant growth stage to phosphine fumigation at 5 degrees C. Furthermore, 8.56- to 2.18-d exposure periods were required to achieve 99% mortality with a range of phosphine concentrations from 0.46 to 3.81 mg/liter. C0.62 t = k expression was obtained from the LT99 values, indicating that the exposure time was more important than the phosphine concentration.