The Java Language Specification, Third Edition

9.6 Annotation Types INTERFACES
272
• Method declarations cannot have a throws clause
Unless explicitly modified herein, all of the rules that apply to ordinary interface
declarations apply to annotation type declarations.
DISCUSSION
For example, annotation types share the same namespace as ordinary class and interface
types.
Annotation type declarations are legal wherever interface declarations are legal, and
have the same scope and accessibility.
The Identifier in an annotation type declaration specifies the name of the
annotation type. A compile-time error occurs if an annotation type has the same
simple name as any of its enclosing classes or interfaces.
If an annotation a on an annotation type declaration corresponds to an annotation
type T, and T has a (meta-)annotation m that corresponds to annotation.Target,
then m must have either an element whose value is
annotation.ElementType.ANNOTATION_TYPE, or an element whose value is
annotation.ElementType.TYPE, or a compile-time error occurs.
DISCUSSION
DRAFT
By convention, no AbstractMethodModifiers should be present except for annotations.
The direct superinterface of an annotation type is always annotation.Annotation.