Costa Rica - GHS Status

Costa Rica adopted the sixt revised edition of the UN Globally Harmonized System for Classification and Lebelling of Chemicals (GHS6) in 2017 through two executives decrees, which are as follows:

• Decree No. 40705-S, published on 2 November 2017, and the implementing Technical Regulation RTCR 478:2015 vide Chemicals Products - Hazardous Chemical Products, Registration, Import and Control.
• Decree No. 40457-D, published on 29th June 2017 and the implementing Technical Regulation RTCR 481:2015 vide Chemical Products - Hazardous Chemical Products and Labelling. 

Technical Regulation RTCR 478: 2015 came into furce on 2 May 2018 and regulates the classification and preparation of Safety Data Sheets (SDS) for hazardous substances. It provided different transition periods for the renewal of registration and notifications for the import of hazardous raw materials obtained before its entry into force, as follows:

• Products registred/notified between 6 October 1999 and 30 December 2005: 18 months
• Products registred/notified between January 2006 and December 2008:  30 months
• Products registred/notified between January 2009 and December 2011: 42 months
• Products registred/notified between January 2012 and May 2018: 60 months

Executive Decree No. 40457-S and its implementing technical regulation RTCR 481:2015 require GHS 6-compliant labelling for both workplace and suppliers chemicals. A 5-years transition period was granted for the use of non-GHS compliant labels until 30 December 2022. 

Local Adaptation of GHS:

The implementation of GHS 6 in Costa Rica includes all hazard classes. No building blocks from this edition have been omitted. 

GHS Labelling Requirements:

In Costa Rica, labelling must comply with the provisions of Clause 7 of Article 1 of Technical Regulation RTCR 481:2015. Labels must be in Spanish and contain the following elements:

• Trade name of the product 
• Sanitary Registration NUMBER
• Lot Number
• Specific use of the product 
• Name and country of the manufacturer or supplier of the product 
• Name, adress and telephone number of the importer or distributor 
• List of hazardous ingredients P01 chemical or common name and concentration (%), same as declared in the Safety Data Sheets
• International System of Units should be used to indicate the contenct or net weight 
• Instruction for use
• Signal word, hazard and precautionary statements (general, prevention, intervention, storage, disposal) related to the hazards of the product to humans, animals, and the environment, in compliance with the GHS, according to the classification of the hazard. It is not necessary to indicate the hazard code or precautionary statement on the label
• Hazard pictogram according to the GHS classification, The symblolgy shall include the respexctive colours and indications
• Include the following legends and print them in bold: "In case of poisoning, consult a doctor and provde this label. "Keep out of reach of children"
• Indicate the telephone number of the National Poison Center

If the original label of the product is in a language other than Spanish, the mandatory information must be printed in Spanish on a complementary label, in a visible place. 

Safety Data Sheets 

In Costa Rica, Annex-1 of the Technical Regulation RTCR 478:2015 governs the preparation of the SDS. Additionally, the contenct and format may follow Annex-4 of the UN GHS 6. A Costa Rican SDS has the 16 standard sections which should be written in Spanish. In addition, all SDSs must be revised once every 5 years. 

GHS in Transport 

In Costa Rica, the transport of danguerous good is governed by the provision of the 19th revised edition of the United Nations Reccomendations on the Transport of Danguerous Good (UN Orange Book) which apply to road andmultimodal transport of hazardous materials in Costa Rica. These provisions are integrated into national practice via administrative procedures and customs protocols.