China’s MEE Announcement No. 40 of 2026 added 486 substances to the Inventory of Existing Chemical Substances in China (IECSC), including 482 previously under Order No. 7 regular registration. While transitioning these chemicals off new-substance registration, roughly 40% remain subject to strict new-use management rules, necessitating immediate compliance verification.

China’s chemical inventory of existing chemical substances is IECSC, which stands for the Inventory of Existing Chemical Substances Produced or Imported in China (IECSC). There are two parts of IECSC, public part and classified/confidential part. Companies can check out the public part by themselves and shall only enquire Authorities for classified/confidential part. If substances are not listed in the public part, companies have to submit a formal enquiry to SCC to check whether a substance is listed in the confidential part. The enquiry costs 3000 RMB.

Effective August 15, 2026, China's MEE will eliminate new chemical filings to align with the Ecological and Environmental Code. Enterprises must submit simplified registration applications instead. Furthermore, foreign entities can no longer apply directly or modify certificates, making local Chinese importers the eligible applicants going forward.

According to the latest WTO public documents, China has submitted a TBT notification for the Measures for the Environmental Management Registration of New Chemical Substances (Revised Draft for Public Comment) (hereinafter referred to as the "Measures (Revised Draft for Public Comment)"), incorporating it into the WTO Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) notification procedure. The notification number is G/TBT/N/CHN/1351/Rev.1, and the document date is July 1, 2026.

Following the revision of the new chemical substance registration regulations, registration entities, registration categories, scope of exemptions, polymer management, and supply chain responsibilities will also undergo a comprehensive overhaul.

The Code significantly increases the maximum fine to 2 million yuan.

On August 20, 2025, the Solid Waste and Chemicals Management Center (SCC) published the "Work Notice Concerning the Extension Application for Public Disclosure of Chemical Substance Identification Information" on its official website. According to the notice, any registration certificate holders that require an extension must prepare necessary materials for explanation and submit their applications to the competent authority by September 15, 2025. To assist relevant enterprises in understanding and complying with the extension application procedures, CIRS Group has compiled this handbook, which covers a variety of information, including:

MEE Announces the 14th Batch (2nd of 2025) of Chemical Substances Proposed for Addition to the IECSC.

On April 25, 2025, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) announced the results of the first batch of New Use Environmental Management Registrations in 2025, approving two chemical substances for new use applications. Among these, an application submitted by CIRS Group on behalf of a client was successfully approved. This marks the first time the authority has publicly granted approvals under the "New Use Environmental Management Registration," a specialized regulatory category under China’s new chemical substance management framework.

China updated to the Inventory of Existing Chemical Substances in China through additions and changes in usage.