EU Regulates Formaldehyde in Articles under REACH

The EU has issued legislation to regulate formaldehyde and formaldehyde-releasing substances in articles. The new law will be implemented in phases, starting August 6, 2026.

On July 17, 2023, the European Union (EU) issued Regulation (EU) 2023/1464 (the Regulation) to regulate formaldehyde and formaldehyde-releasing substances in articles.

The Regulation contains, inter alia, several important points and provisions. It:

Creates new entry 77 to Annex XVII of Regulation (EC) 1907/2006 (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals, Annex XVII of REACH, consolidated version to June 2023)
Details the test methods for formaldehyde emissions from articles and the interior of vehicles
Exempts certain products (see Table 1)
Emphasizes that toys for children of all ages are within the scope of restrictions (preamble, point 36)

Highlights of the Regulation are summarized in Table 1.

Regulation (EU) 2023/1464 of July 14, 2023, amending Annex XVII of REACH as regards formaldehyde and formaldehyde releasers, Official Journal of the EU, July 17, 2023

Scope	Requirement	Method	Effective Date
Furniture and wood-based articles*	≤ 0.062 mg/m3	Chamber method as described in Appendix 14, paragraph 1	After August 6, 2026
Articles other than furniture and wood-based articles*	≤ 0.080 mg/m3	Chamber method as described in Appendix 14, paragraph 1	After August 6, 2026
Interior of road vehicles, including trucks and buses**	≤ 0.062 mg/m3	Ambient mode according to ISO 12219-1 or ISO 12219-10 (see Appendix 14, paragraph 2)	After August 6, 2027

Exemption:

Articles in which formaldehyde or formaldehyde releasing substances are exclusively naturally present in the materials from which the articles are manufactured
Articles exclusively for outdoor use under foreseeable conditions
Articles in constructions, that are exclusively used outside the building shell and vapor barrier and that do not emit formaldehyde into indoor air
Articles exclusively for industrial or professional use unless formaldehyde released from these leads to exposure of the general public under foreseeable conditions of use
Articles falling under the scope of entry 72 to Annex XVII of REACH
Biocidal products (Regulation (EU) 528/2012)
Medical devices (Regulation (EU) 2017/745)
Personal protective equipment (Regulation (EU) 2016/425)
Food contact materials and articles (Regulation (EU) 1935/2004)
Second-hand articles

Road vehicles exclusively for industrial and professional use, unless the concentration of formaldehyde in the interior of those vehicles leads to exposure of the general public under foreseeable conditions of use
Second-hand vehicles

Table 1

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