ECHA has announced a new EU inspection project. The inspections will primarily focus on verifying that banned or restricted substances do not exceed permitted limits in products and mixtures. A new feature is the inclusion of products sold online, as this is where non-compliant products have often been detected previously. Inspections are scheduled to begin in 2028.
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has announced a new pan-European inspection project aimed at verifying product compliance with restrictions on the presence of hazardous substances in mixtures and articles.
As part of the project (REF-16), inspectors will verify whether products and mixtures placed on the market meet the requirements of EU chemical regulations, including whether the content of hazardous substances exceeds permitted levels. The inspections will not be limited to traditional trade; they will also include verification of products sold online.
The new initiative is a response to the results of previous inspections, which revealed frequent instances of non-compliance – particularly in imported products and those sold online. In many cases, hazardous substances were detected in concentrations exceeding permitted limits. The project aims to improve the effectiveness of inspections and better identify products that do not comply with legal requirements.
Inspections under the REF-16 project are scheduled for 2028, with a report on their results published in 2029.
In parallel, ECHA will also launch other inspection activities, including:
• a pilot project on tattoo inks and permanent makeup (inspections starting in 2027),
• initiatives to verify the classification and labeling of chemicals,
• activities related to the online sale of biocidal products and cross-border cooperation.
What does this mean for businesses?
For manufacturers, importers, and distributors, this is a clear signal of the need to verify product composition, documentation, and compliance with the restrictions set out in REACH regulations.
Source: https://echa.europa.eu/pl/-/inspectors-to-check-compliance-with-restrictions-on-hazardous-substances-in-products#msdynmkt_trackingcontext=7e0c3b00-48e8-4162-a8d2-4457b7c00000
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