In recent years, the environmental problems caused by microplastics (MPs) as new pollutants have received widespread attention. And the aqueous environment, which is the main pool of microplastics, has become a hot research area for its management. Due to their stability, ease of migration, and toxic effects caused by adsorption of other pollutants, etc., conventional water treatment technologies are not able to remove them efficiently and completely. However, photocatalysis can convert MPs to water-soluble hydrocarbons and CO2 at laboratory scale, showing great potential for complete degradation of MPs. This paper reviews the mechanism of MPs removal by photocatalysis and the main factors affecting catalysis to provide a reliable basis for the study of MPs removal in the aqueous environment. At the same time, it prospects the development trend of photocatalytic degradation of MPs and catalysts in complex aqueous environment.