To elucidate the photolysis characteristics of the insecticide imidacloprid in the environment, $[^{14}C]$imidacloprid was treated into water and paddy soil-water system. In water system, the amount of $^{14}C$-radioactivity distributed in aqueous phase was rapidly increased up to 80% of total $^{14}C$ in water during 7 days of exposure to sunlight. Also, the amounts of imidacloprid in water at day 0 and 3 days after treatment were 1.2461 and 0.8594 mg/kg, respectively, not being detected 7 days after treatment, indicating rapid degradation of imidacloprid in water by sunlight. One photodegradation product, imidacloprid urea, in which the $N-NO_2$ moiety of imidacloprid was replaced by oxygen, was detected from water in water and water-paddy systems. The amount of the metabolite detected from water in water system was 0.0112 mg/kg 1 day after treatment and reached the top concentration of 0.0391 mg/kg 7 days after treatment. In case of water-paddy system, its amount was 0.0117 mg/kg 1 day after treatment and reached the highest concentration of 0.0259 mg/kg 3 days after treatment. Rapid transformation of imidacloprid into polar compounds continued until 7 days after treatment, considering that 80% of $^{14}C$ in water distributed in aqueous phase 7 days after treatment, amount of imidacloprid was 1.6538 mg/kg at day 0 and 0.8785 mg/kg 1 day after treatment, not being detected after 15 days, indicating rapid degradation of imidacloprid in water-paddy soil system by sunlight. The direct degradation of imidacloprid to imidacloprid urea would be a major photodegradation pathway in water and water-paddy soil systems.