UK REACH Registration

Updated on August 13, 2026

UK REACH is Great Britain's independent chemical regulation framework enforced by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) following Brexit. Overseas chemical manufacturers, GB importers, and manufacturers placing ≥1 t/a of chemical substances onto the Great Britain market must register via UK REACH-IT. Non-GB entities must appoint a UK-based Only Representative (OR) to maintain compliance.

What is UK REACH?

The United Kingdom officially left the European Union on January 31, 2020, and the transition period ended on December 31, 2020. Following the Brexit transition period, the UK established its independent chemical regulatory framework - UK REACH, which took effect on January 1, 2021. It establishes an independent regulatory framework for managing chemicals in Great Britain (GB)—comprising England, Scotland, and Wales.

Regulatory Authority: Health and Safety Executive (HSE)

Note: Under the Northern Ireland Protocol, Northern Ireland continues to follow EU REACH regulations.

What is the scope of UK REACH？

Registration is required for:

• Chemical substances manufactured or imported into Great Britain≥1 t/a.
• Chemical constituents in mixtures placed on the market ≥1 t/a.
• Chemical substances intended to be released from articles placed on the market, where the total quantity is ≥1 t/a.

Who must complete UK REACH registration?

• Manufacturers in GB;

• Importers in GB;

Enterprises based outside of GB should entrust a GB-based only representative (OR) to complete UK REACH registration.

Current routes to UK REACH compliance

Submit DUIN (Enterprises based outside of GB that have completed EU REACH registration and the downstream users are located in GB)

• The downstream users should create a new account with the ‘Comply with UK REACH’ service;
• Submit a notification to HSE;
• A new registration must be submitted within eight, nine, or ten years from October 28, 2021;

If the downstream users are not willing to do so, then the enterprise can entrust a GB-based OR.

Directly Submit UK REACH Registration

• NRES (New Registration of an Existing Substance)

For substances registered under EU REACH prior to December 31, 2020. Applicants can initially submit a dossier with a waiver statement to secure a UK registration number without immediate Letter of Access (LoA) data purchases. Full LoA hazard data must be submitted before the applicable tonnage deadline.

• Full Dossier Registration

Requires a complete data package—including chemical safety reports, toxicological data, and exposure scenarios matching tonnage and hazard categories—prior to market entry.

UK REACH Registration Transitional Period

On July 16, 2026, the UK government officially published the REACH (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2026 (Statutory Instrument 2026 No. 849), extending the final deadlines for chemical registration compliance checks and information submission to 2029/2030/2031. The regulation enters into force on 6 August 2026.

The submission deadlines for substances of different tonnage bands and hazards are as follows:

Enterprises may check whether your substances are listed in the UK SVHC List via CIRS's Chemradar.

UK REACH Administrative Fee

On March 10, 2025, UK's Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) released The REACH Fees and Charges (Amendment of Commission Regulation (EC) No 340/2008) Regulations 2025, announcing changes to several fees for registration and authorization under UK REACH. The revised rules took effect on April 1, 2025. Take the large scale enterprises as an example, the administrative fee shall be:

Click here to learn more details.

Comparison with EU REACH

The overall framework and registration procedure of UK REACH remain largely consistent with EU REACH; however, UK REACH does not have pre-registration or late pre-registration. 

Our Services

• Downstream User Import Notification (DUIN)
• Only representaive service for non-GB based companies
• UK REACH full registration service
• UK REACH compliance consulting and training service
• Classification, Authoring/Review SDS & Labels for UK CLP

Why Choose CIRS?

Established in 2007, CIRS Group is a leading product safety and regulatory consulting firm. CIRS has branch offices in the Republic of Ireland, South Korea, the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan and China.

Our Key Advantages:

Local UK Office & Global Network: CIRS has set up a branch office in UK, thus can act as the only representative under UK REACH and supports communication and project coordination in Great Britain.

Top-Tier Toxicologists & Scientists: More than 60% of our technical experts hold Master’s or Ph.D. degrees in chemistry, toxicology, or environmental science. Our technical team also covers 24 Chinese certified toxicologists (DCST), 2 US certified toxicologists (DABT) and 1 European registered toxicologist (ERT).

Proven Track Record: Over half of our team members have over a decade of experience in chemical regulatory compliance. Having served clients across 50+ countries, we have successfully managed 100+ full registrations and over 1,000 DUIN submissions with industry-leading pass rates.

Full-Lifecycle Coverage: We manage the entire process—from compliance assessments, data gap analysis, testing protocal design, expert review, dossier preparation to submission, certificate delivery, and post-market maintenance.

One-Stop Market Access: Our chemical team provides comprehensive, end-to-end regulatory solutions across major global markets, including China REACH, EU REACH/CLP, UK REACH, K-REACH, KKDIK, etc., eliminating multi-vendor complexity and significantly lowering your compliance costs.

Early Risk Intelligence: We continuously track the regulatory shifts to protect your supply chain from unexpected disruptions.

UK REACH Compliance: Frequently Asked Questions for Industry

Q1: Our historical exports to Great Britain were below 1 tonne per year. However, our overseas manufacturer completed an EU REACH registration via a UK-based Only Representative (OR) prior to December 31, 2020. Are we still eligible to submit a Downstream User Import Notification (DUIN)?

A1: Yes. DUIN eligibility depends strictly on whether the substance entered the Great Britain (GB) supply chain between January 1, 2019, and December 31, 2020. Prior export tonnage does not affect your eligibility.

Q2: If our company imports polymers, do we need to identify their constituent monomers and submit a DUIN for those monomers?

A2: Polymers themselves are exempt from UK REACH registration, meaning you do not need to submit a DUIN for the polymer itself. However, any monomers used to synthesize the imported polymer do require a DUIN notification.

Q3: If the underlying EU REACH registration is revoked for a supply chain that has already completed a DUIN, will our DUIN be impacted?

A3: Yes, the DUIN will become invalid, and you will lose the right to import or export using that notification number. Per official guidance, a GB-based company holding a DUIN may transition to a different EU supplier (or a non-EU supplier with an appointed EU OR), provided there is an active EU REACH registration maintained in the supply chain. Without an active EU registration number, the import no longer qualifies as a "protected transitional import".

Q4: Under the New Registration of Existing Substances (NRES) pathway, if a company terminates its registration number before the transitional data-submission deadline, are they still required to submit a complete data dossier?

A4: No. You simply need to declare your intent to terminate the registration within the IT system. However, if you choose to resume manufacturing or importing the substance after the deadline, you will still need to purchase the required data rights as part of a joint submission.

Q5: For NRES registrations, if a company initially registers at a higher tonnage band but subsequently reduces its volume to a lower band before the deadline, can they submit data only for the lower tonnage?

A5: No. Once a registration is submitted for a higher tonnage band, the registrant remains bound by the compliance deadline for that higher band and must submit the corresponding, complete data package required for that higher volume.

GET IN TOUCH

If you need any assistance or have any questions, please get in touch with us via service@cirs-group.com.