UK releases guidance for management of CMR substances in cosmetic products

The UK government published the Guidance on the Management of CMR substances under the UK Cosmetics Regulation, on 5 October 2023. The regulation was published under the guidance of the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) and consists of a guidance document on the management of CMR (carcinogenic, mutagenic, or toxic for reproduction) chemicals present in cosmetics and the application for the exemption process for their continued use. England, Scotland, and Wales come under the scope of these regulations.

The UK Cosmetics Regulation can allow the use of CMRs in cosmetic products with an exemption from the Secretary of State. The regulation essentially covers the exemption procedure and associated timescales for the continued use in cosmetic goods of compounds categorized as carcinogenic, mutagenic, and toxic for reproduction (CMR) under the GB CLP Regulations. These exemptions are granted under the UK Cosmetics Regulation and can only be granted by the Secretary of State (SoS).

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has published the two procedures for GB mandatory classification and labeling under Article 37 and Article 37A. The deadline for applications to OPSS for cosmetic product chemicals is 18 months after the Technical Report is published on the HSE GB CLP Publication table. If the submitted exemption dossier needs to be updated, then interested parties can continue to check the data using the following links:

• ECHA website

• ECHA Registry of CLH Intentions until outcome

• ECHA Weekly Newsletter

• HSE GB CLP e-Bulletin

• HSE GB CLP publication table

The OPSS will not send a separate notification for this.

OPSS requests that the original report study and literature review be submitted with the application. OPSS is also committed to maintaining the confidentiality of submitted data.

Exemption applications can be submitted to cmrenquiries@beis.gov.uk via email.