Japan included perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS) and its related substances under strict regulatory control.

On January 15, 2026, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a final rule announcing a four-month extension to the compliance deadlines under its Hazard Communication Standard (HCS; 29 C.F.R. §1910.1200). This adjustment aims to provide OSHA with the necessary time to complete and formally issue supporting guidance documents, while ensuring that regulated entities have sufficient time for policy interpretation, internal assessment, and adaptation of compliance systems.

On December 5, 2025, the California OEHHA announced the formal listing of two chemicals, Bisphenol S (BPS) and N-Methyl-N-Formylhydrazine, to the California Proposition 65 list.

China proposes including five chemicals into the Catalog of Hazardous Chemicals.

On January 17, 2026, the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam announced that three government decrees had been formally promulgated to support the implementation of the Law on Chemicals (No. 69/2025/QH15), which officially took effect on January 1, 2026. These supporting regulations collectively facilitate the effective implementation of the Law on Chemicals, marking a new phase of systematic chemical management in Vietnam. All three decrees took effect on January 17, 2026.

On January 12, 2026, the New Jersey State Senate passed Bill S1221, officially titled the Protecting Against Forever Chemicals Act.

On January 5, 2026, in accordance with the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016, the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals (DCPC) of India issued three important announcements, officially postponing the implementation dates of the following three Quality Control Orders (QCOs), thereby providing relevant enterprises with more adequate preparation time.

Recently, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) has approved “Words or Symbols” informing the purchaser of PFAS in a product.

On January 9, 2026, the European Commission released a draft proposal to technically update Annex XVII of the REACH Regulation. This aims to align with the new hazard classifications added under the CLP Regulation in 2024 and 2025. The core amendments involve expanding the list of restricted Carcinogenic, Mutagenic or Toxic for Reproduction (CMR) substances.

JSA released the revised Japanese Industrial Standards JIS Z 7252:2025 and JIS Z 7253:2025.