REACH Update: November 2007

Posted: November 7, 2007

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Substances that have been registered by the manufacturer or by an importer do not need to be registered again by a downstream user that mixes them into a preparation. Therefore, for a producer of a cosmetics and personal care product that is located in the EU, usually no obligation arises to register the ingredients used in the products; if it does arise, the producer is a direct importer of the ingredients from a country outside the EU.

The situation is most often different when cosmetics and personal care products are manufactured outside of the EU and meant to be imported into the EU markets. In some cases, registration may have been completed by an upstream manufacturer; e.g., the ingredients are imported from Europe, and are re-exported as a part of the consumer product. If the ingredients are not registered, and when exceeding the threshold quantity, the importer of the consumer products into the EU is responsible for the registration. Importer here means any natural or legal person established within the community who is responsible for the import.

All manufacturers of substances or preparations, including cosmetics and personal care, which are located outside the EU and export into the EU can nominate an “only” representative located within the EU to fulfill all registration requirements. This only representative will have to comply with all obligations of importers under the registration title of REACH. In the above example, the importer would be considered a downstream user.

One exemption exists for cosmetics and personal care chemicals under REACH--Title IV does not apply to cosmetic products. This title specifies the provisions for information down the supply chain. In other words, this exception for cosmetics and personal care means that a safety data sheet, as specified by the REACH regulation, does not need to be provided to the users of cosmetics and personal care products, which are the consumers.

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