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UK government announces new details of UK REACH

September 09, 2020

Whilst the end of the Brexit Transition Period is in sight, considering the current positions of the EU and UK government in the Brexit negations, it is extremely unlikely EU REACH will remain in force in the UK once the transition period ends on 31 December, 2020.

On 1 September, 2020 the UK government announced further, new details of ‘UK REACH’. UK-based companies with current REACH registrations for a specific substance will automatically have their registrations ‘grandfathered’ into the UK REACH registration database, if basic administrative information is provided to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) by 30 April 2021.

UK REACH timelines

The UK government announced timelines for UK-based companies to submit a full registration:

28 October 2023

  • Substances imported or manufactured in the UK at 1000 tonnes or more per year
  • Carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic for reproduction substance (CMRs) at 1 tonne or more per year
  • Very toxic to aquatic organisms (acute or chronic) at 100 tonnes or more per year
  • Substances on the EU REACH Candidate list (taken from 31 December 2020)

28 October 2025

  • Substances imported or manufactured in the UK at 100 tonnes or more per year
  • Substances on the EU REACH Candidate list (taken from 27 October 2023)

28 October 2027

  • Substances imported or manufactured in the UK at 1 tonne or more per year

All current REACH Authorisations held by UK-based companies will be recognised under UK REACH. A new online service ‘Comply with UK REACH’ will go live on 1 January 2021, where companies can, amongst other tasks, validate existing UK-held EU registrations (‘Grandfathering’) or submit new substance registrations. It is important to note this applies to UK-based companies only – the last information from the UK government was that Non-UK companies wishing to register under UK REACH would need to submit a full substance data package on 1 January, 2021 to remain compliant in the UK.

Take action now

In preparation of UK REACH, our advice to all companies (both UK and Non-UK based) is to:

  1. Identify all chemical substances and their volumes for registration in the UK
  2. Contact consortia/ lead registrants for these substances to ask what if any decisions have been made on data access rights under UK REACH
  3. Allocate a budget
  4. Non-UK registrants should identify a potential Only Representative to handle registrations

Get in touch

TSG is supporting clients with their UK REACH requirements. Contact us at [email protected] to speak with a specialist.