Restrictions are a tool to protect human health and the environment from unacceptable risks posed by some chemicals. restrictions, described in Annex XVII of Regulation 1907/2006 (REACH), may limit or ban the manufacture, placing on the market or use of a substance. restrictions to which substances are potentially subjected have to be reported in Section 15 of the SDS.
Last September 27th 2023, the latest update to Annex XVII to REACH Regulation has been published in the form of Regulation 2023/2055.
Regulation 2023/2055 adds restriction 78 to Annex XVII to the REACH Regulation, focusing on microplastics.
Microplastics in some types of products (such as "rinse-off products" as defined in the Cosmetics Reg. 1223/2009) cannot be placed on the market in the form of substances as such or intentionally added as components of mixtures in concentration equal to or greater than 0.01% by weight.
For some types of products (such as, for example, microparticles of synthetic polymers intended for use at industrial sites) it is instead necessary to communicate additional information on the label and/or in the SDS.
To ensure sufficient time to adapt to the new requirements, the following transitional periods are established depending on the use and/or product sectors.
Products containing microplastics in concentrations equal to or above 0.01% cannot be placed on the market after the above dates.
Regarding label elements and/or SDS, the following transition periods are in force:
Traceone (previously known as Trace One) is already working on implementing and providing the update related to this new regulation.
For more information regarding Regulation 2023/2055, please consult the following link: