European Chemicals Regulation: New Candidate List Entries

The EU Candidate List is a list of substances that may have serious effects on human health or the environment and have been identified as substances of very high concern (SVHC). The list is intended to inform the public and industry that these substances are candidates for possible inclusion in the Authorization List. Substances on this list cannot be placed on the market or used after a certain date unless an authorization for their specific use is granted or the use is excluded from authorization. Any supplier of articles containing a Candidate List substance above a concentration of 0.1% (w/w) must communicate this to customers down the supply chain and to consumers.

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has added five new chemicals to the Candidate List (see Tab. below), one of which is reproductive toxicant, three of which are persistent and bioaccumulative, and one of which has a combination of reproductive toxicity, persistence, bioaccumulation and toxicity. These chemicals, commonly found in everyday products such as inks, toners, adhesives, sealants, and cleaning products, bring the total number of entries on the Candidate List to 240. Some entries represent groups of chemicals that affect a larger number of substances. The ECHA Member State Committee has confirmed these additions.

Under REACH, importers and manufacturers must notify ECHA if their articles contain Candidate List substances within six months of the date of inclusion on the list (January 23, 2024). In addition, EU and EEA (European Economic Area) suppliers of these substances must update their safety data sheets for their customers. Compliance with the Waste Framework Directive extends these obligations, as companies must also notify ECHA if their articles contain substances of very high concern in concentrations above 0.1 % (w/w). This notification will be published in ECHA’s Substances of Concern in Products (SCIP) database.

Table. Entries added to the Candidate List on 23 January 2024.

Substance name	EC number	CAS number	Reason for inclusion	Examples of uses
2,4,6-tri-tert-butylphenol	211-989-5	732-26-3	Toxic for reproduction (Article 57c) Persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT) (Article 57d)	Manufacture of another substance; formulation of mixtures and in fuel products.
2-(2H-benzotriazol-2-yl)-4-(1,1,3,3-tetramethylbutyl)phenol	221-573-5	3147-75-9	Very persistent and very bioaccumulative (vPvB) (Article 57e)	Air care products, coating products, adhesives and sealants, lubricants and greases, polishes and waxes and washing and cleaning products.
2-(dimethylamino)-2-[(4-methylphenyl)methyl]-1-[4-(morpholin-4-yl)phenyl]butan-1-one	438-340-0	119344-86-4	Toxic for reproduction (Article 57c)	Inks and toners, coating products.
Bumetrizole	223-445-4	3896-11-5	vPvB (Article 57e)	Coating products, adhesives and sealants and washing and cleaning products.
Oligomerisation and alkylation reaction products of 2-phenylpropene and phenol	700-960-7	–	vPvB (Article 57e)	Adhesives and sealants, coating products, fillers, putties, plasters, modelling clay, inks and toners and polymers.
Dibutyl phthalate (updated entry)	201-557-4	84-74-2	Endocrine disrupting properties (Article 57(f) – environment)	Metal working fluids, washing and cleaning products, laboratory chemicals and polymers.