Guidance on substances in articles updated

ECHA/NA/17/17

ECHA has published a comprehensive update to its Guidance on requirements for substances in articles. It gives more clarity on the communication and notification obligations of companies when substances of very high concern are contained in articles.

Helsinki, 28 June 2017 – This guidance will be useful for companies that import and produce articles. It clarifies their obligations under REACH to communicate with customers and notify ECHA when substances of very high concern (SVHCs) are contained in the article. SVHCs are listed on the Candidate List. It will also help them to make sure that they have sufficient information to comply with their respective obligations.

The updated guidance includes new examples in line with the judgement of the Court of Justice of 10 September 2015, which further clarified the scope of the obligations. According to the ruling, the legal obligations also apply to articles that are present in complex products – for example, a component of a car or a washing machine. It also updates and improves the existing examples, thanks to experience gained and questions received.

Following the Court of Justice’s judgement, ECHA published a quick update of this guidance in December 2015 to correct the parts that were not consistent with the conclusions of the judgement.

This substantial update has been the subject of the normal guidance consultation process, which included a consultation with Member States, the European Commission and ECHA's accredited stakeholders.