To provide an exhaust emission control method for an internal combustion engine, which suppresses an Sox poisoning phenomenon of an exhaust purifying catalyst of NOx occluded reducing type, effectively purifies particulate matters in exhaust gas, and improves the purifying rate of the exhaust gas.

In this emission control method for the internal combustion engine, sulfur components which cause generating sulfur oxides after burning of the internal combustion engine 1 in an upstream side of a particulate filter 47 arranged on an exhaust passage 7 are solidified by using a sulfur component solidifying agent including basic metallic element, and the solidified sulfur components are collected by the particulate filter 47 with the particulate matters generated by the combustion of the internal combustion engine. The collected particulate elements are decomposed by the sulfur component solidifying agent, and nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbon, and/or carbon monoxide in the exhaust gas are purified by the NOx occluded reducing type exhaust emission control catalyst 39a arranged in a downstream side of the particulate filter 47.

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