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The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the Prior Informed Consent (PIC) Designated National Authority (DNA) for Great Britain (GB), will update the GB PIC list from 28 August 2026. Regulation (EU) No 649/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012, also known as the GB PIC list, addresses the export and import of hazardous chemicals. Updates to it ensure that decisions to list chemicals under the Rotterdam Convention's PIC procedure for certain hazardous chemicals...
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August 25, 2026
Navigating a New UK REACH Registration for an Existing Substance Without a Lead Registrant
Following the United Kingdom’s (UK) exit from the European Union (EU), any legal entity based in Great Britain (GB) intending to manufacture or import a substance into England, Scotland, and/or Wales at or above one tonne per year is required to submit a registration to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for that substance. This process is typically straightforward. What should a company do, however, when a substance is identified as a New Registration of an Existing Substance (NRES) and no...
On 6 August 2026, the United Kingdom (UK) government extended the UK Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) transitional deadlines for any company manufacturing or importing chemicals into Great Britain (England, Scotland, and Wales). Grandfathered substances now have one of the following deadlines depending upon the hazardous properties and tonnage band. 27 October 2029: Substances that are manufactured or imported at or above 1,000 metric...
The United Kingdom’s (UK) Health and Safety Executive (HSE) announced on February 3, 2026, that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has published a PFAS Plan, a “cross-government, science-led” plan to understand the impacts of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) on public health and the environment, with coordinated actions to minimize risks. Defra notes that there is no universally agreed definition of PFAS, but states that the Organisation for Economic...
The United Kingdom’s (UK) Health and Safety Executive (HSE) announced on March 21, 2025, that it has published the following annual report and work program on activities under the UK regulation on the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (UK REACH): UK REACH Report, which outlines the relevant activities covering the 2023 to 2024 Work Programme; and UK REACH Work Programme, which describes operational work for 2024 to 2025. The UK REACH Report provides a summary...
The United Kingdom’s (UK) Health and Safety Executive (HSE) announced in its January 17, 2024, UK REACH ebulletin that it recommended that diisohexyl phthalate (DIHxP) be added to the list of substances subject to authorization (Annex 14) for UK REACH. As reported in our October 13, 2023, blog item, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) prioritized DIHxP and included DIHxP in its April 12, 2023, recommendation for the inclusion of substances in the European Union (EU) Registration,...
October 13, 2023
HSE Begins Public Consultation on Draft Recommendation to Add DIHxP to UK REACH Authorization List
The United Kingdom (UK) Health and Safety Executive (HSE) began a public consultation on September 18, 2023, on its draft recommendation for 2023 to include diisohexyl phthalate (DIHxP) on the authorization list (Annex 14 of UK REACH). According to HSE’s draft background document, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) prioritized DIHxP and included DIHxP in its April 12, 2023, recommendation for the inclusion of substances in the European Union (EU) Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and...
June 28, 2023
Registration Now Open for “Preparing a PFAS Game Plan in the U.S., the UK, and the EU” Webinar
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. (EDT)4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. (CEST)REGISTER NOW Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are attracting global legal, regulatory, commercial, and litigation attention as no other “emerging contaminant” has. Companies producing, processing, distributing, and/or using these substances must be aware of these global legal developments and take steps now to minimize legal, regulatory, and commercial risk.In the...
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) announced on June 8, 2023, that it is recommending the restriction of hazardous substances in ink used for tattooing and permanent makeup (PMU) in Great Britain (GB). HSE states that the proposed restriction would target substances classified for carcinogenicity, mutagenicity, reproductive toxicity, skin sensitization, skin corrosion, and serious eye damage. HSE proposes concentration limits of substances in tattoo ink and PMU based on those established in...
June 6, 2023
HSE Proposes to Include Substances in UK REACH Substance Evaluation Rolling Action Plan
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has proposed to include three substances in the rolling action plan (RAP) for 2023 to 2025. HSE states that it has “sought to complement rather than replicate evaluation work that has been or will be performed by other regulatory regimes” (such as via the European Union’s (EU) Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation). According to HSE, its intention is to increase its overall...