The Ministry of Environment of Korea (MoE) published the Act on Registration and Evaluation, etc of Chemical Substances (known as K-REACH) on January 1, 2015. (The last update on 2024. 07. 10.). K-REACH aims to protect public health and the environment. This is achieved by four procedures: notification or registration, evaluation, authorization, and restriction of chemicals.
Under K-REACH, manufacturers or importers of a new chemical substance need to register the substances before manufacture or import. Substances less than 100 kg/ year (1t/year from January 1, 2025) only require notification and do not need to go through hazard evaluation.
Manufacturers or importers of a Priority Existing Chemicals (PEC) substance must register the substances before manufacturing or importing. Pre-registration of PEC substances is impossible as the transition period has already passed.
Existing substances above 1 Tonne Per Annum (TPA) must be registered within grace periods. Only companies that carried out pre-registration can be entitled to the grace periods. The grace periods vary based on the tonnage band. After the grace periods for each tonnage band, existing substances within that tonnage band cannot be pre-registered, and they should be registered before placing the substances in Korea.
News
On January 9, 2024, the National Assembly of South Korea passed five laws related to the environment, including the “Chemical Substances Registration and Evaluation Act” and the “Chemical Substances Control Act.”...
Read More
On December 7, 2023, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS, Director Oh Yoo-kyung) announced that 1,2,4-trihydroxybenzenes (THB) will be designated as a prohibited raw material for use in cosmetics...
Read MoreIf you want to access the GHS report, please Register here in GPC Intelligence Portal click here