Clarification on UK REACH compliance processes

In a private communication with GPC, UK’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE) provided some clarification on the UK REACH compliance procedures currently available for importers and manufacturers.

A great number of GB-based importers and non-GB-based manufacturers are now taking advantage of the Downstream User Import Notification (DUIN) to maintain access to the GB market for their EU REACH registered substances, while postponing the registration deadline of these substances by 2, 4, or 6 years from 28 October 2021. Once they have submitted a DUIN, manufacturers and importers may submit an art. 26 Inquiry to HSE right away if they seek to claim the role of Lead Registrant (LR) or to simply be involved in the discussion to select a LR.

Following the successful submission of a DUIN and an art. 26 Inquiry, importers and manufacturers face two options:

• Option 1: They may decide to register their substances right away. In this case, they must pay the HSE registration fee and submit a registration dossier. If all the substance information required in the dossier is not yet available to them, they may include a waiver explaining why they were not able to submit a full registration dossier (HSE is yet to publish guidance on acceptable justifications). They will them need to submit the full data by the relevant DUIN deadline (2, 4 or 6 years)
• Option 2: They may continue to place their DUIN-notified substances on the GB market and wait to complete the full registration by the relevant deadline.

Despite its positive outcome (i.e., avoiding major disruptions on existing EU-UK supply chains), DUIN has had a tricky consequence for companies who seek to place EU-REACH registered substances into the GB market but who did not themselves place the substances on the GB market during the Brexit transition period (from 01/01/2019 to 31/12/2020). Indeed, new GB-based importers and non-GB-based manufacturers are required to register their substances within UK REACH before they may place them on the GB market. However, they are often unable to gather the substance information needed in the HSE registration dossier, because DUIN may have put the joint registrations and data sharing on hold.

Therefore, in order to provide parity between new registrants and DUIN beneficiaries, HSE recently introduced the concept of New Registration of an Existing Substance (NRES). If you are a non-GB based manufacturer or a GB-based importer and you seek to place an EU REACH-registered substance in the GB-market, then your substance qualifies as a NRES. Provided that you comply with a simplified registration process, you may place your substance on the GB-market and postpone the full registration deadline of your substance by 2, 4 or 6 years from 27 October 2021.

The simplified registration process is as follows:

1. Submit an art. 26 Inquiry to HSE,
2. Submit an alleviated registration dossier, including a waiver explaining why you were not able to submit a full registration dossier,
3. Pay the HSE registration fee for your substance,
4. You must then submit the full substance data by the relevant deadline (2, 4 or 6 years).

Last update: 2021-05-31