On March 1, 2023, the National Public Service Platform for Standards Information in China released two draft national standards – GB 6944 Classification and Code of Dangerous Goods and GB 12268 List of Dangerous Goods. The two drafts are open for public consultation until May 8, 2023.

Statistics indicate that the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) in India has reinforced the scrutiny of imported goods in the first quarter of this year. Products from several enterprises exporting chemicals to India have been detained because of the absence of the mandatory BIS certificate. In the following article, we summarize the latest BIS lists and their corresponding implementation timelines (as of March 2023). All products in the List under Mandatory Certification must obtain relevant certificates from the Bureau of India Standards (BIS) before they are introduced to the Indian market.

On March 1, 2023, members of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) adopted their opinions on amending the regulation on fluorinated greenhouse gases (F-gas) emissions with 64 votes in favor, eight against and seven abstentions, and the further target is to accelerate the transition to climate neutrality. The report is scheduled to be adopted during the March 29-30, 2023 plenary sitting and will constitute Parliament’s negotiating position with EU governments on the final shape of the legislation on F-gas.

CIRS Group Announces the Launch of iCIMS - Intelligent Chemical Inventory Management System

Starting from 2023, the amendments to Annex II of REACH regulation on safety data sheets (SDSs) became mandatory. This means that related enterprises must affix a unique formula identifier (UFI) code in section 1.1 of their SDS when exporting mixtures to the EU. Mixtures that meet specific conditions must also complete poison center notification (PCN).

On February 17, 2023, ECHA published a public consultation on two substances that are proposed to be identified as substances of very high concern (SVHC). Related enterprises may make comments on the two substances before April 3, 2023.

On January 12, 2023, Taiwan’s Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) supplemented a total of 15 chemical substances to the concerned chemical list in the following three categories: Five substances with concerns about food safety risks; Two new psychoactive substances (NPS); and Eight explosive precursors.

On February 9, the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) Committee tweeted that it has endorsed the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), a measure aimed at responding to climate change and preventing carbon leakage, with 63 votes in favor, 7 votes against and 7 votes in abstention.

What you need to know about the South Korean MSDS submission process and CBI protection

On January 13, 2023, five countries – Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden – submitted a restriction proposal to ECHA on Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) under REACH. On February 7, ECHA published the detailed restriction proposal of roughly 10,000 PFASs, which is the broadest restriction proposal in history. Next, ECHA will start a six-month public consultation on PFASs on March 22.