EU Adopts Restrictions on CMRs in Textiles

On 12^th October 2018, the Official Journal of the European Union published Regulation (EU) 2018/1513 to amend Annex XVII to Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) as regards certain substances classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic for reproduction (CMR), category 1A or 1B.

The Regulation brings new limits to 33 CMRs. According to the Regulation , Entry No. 72 under Annex XVII and Appendix 12 shall be added. The Regulation will come into force from 1 November 2020.

The main contents are as follows：

(1) Entry No. 72 under Annex XVII to Regulation(EC) No 1907/2006 is added:

1.Shall not be placed on the market after 1 November 2020 in any of the following:

(a)clothing or related accessories;

(b)textiles other than clothing which, under normal or reasonably foreseeable conditions of use, come into contact with human skin to an extent similar to clothing;

(c)footwear;

if the clothing, related accessory, textile other than clothing or footwear is for use by consumers and the substance is present in a concentration, measured in homogeneous material, equal to or greater than that specified for that substance in Appendix 12.

2.By way of derogation, in relation to the placing on the market of formaldehyde [CAS No 50-00-0] in jackets, coats or upholstery, the relevant concentration for the purposes of paragraph 1 shall be 300 mg/kg during the period between 1 November 2020 and 1 November 2023. The concentration specified in Appendix 12 shall apply thereafter.

3.Paragraph 1 shall not apply to:

(a)clothing, related accessories or footwear, or parts of clothing, related accessories or footwear, made exclusively of natural leather, fur or hide;

(b)non-textile fasteners and non-textile decorative attachments;

(c)second-hand clothing, related accessories, textiles other than clothing or footwear;

(d)wall-to-wall carpets and textile floor coverings for indoor use, rugs and runners.

4.Paragraph 1 shall not apply to clothing, related accessories, textiles other than clothing, or footwear within the scope of Regulation (EU) 2016/425 of the European Parliament and of the Council (*) or Regulation (EU) 2017/745 of the European Parliament and of the Council (**).

5.Paragraph 1(b) shall not apply to disposable textiles. ‘Disposable textiles’ means textiles that are designed to be used only once or for a limited time and are not intended for subsequent use for the same or a similar purpose.

6.Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall apply without prejudice to the application of any stricter restrictions set out in this Annex or in other applicable Union legislation.

7.The Commission shall review the exemption in paragraph 3(d) and, if appropriate, modify that point accordingly.

(*)Regulation (EU) 2016/425 of the European Parliament and of the Council of of 9 March 2016 on personal protective equipment and repealing Council Directive 89/686/EEC (OJ L 81, 31.3.2016, p.51).

(**)Regulation (EU) 2017/745 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 April 2017 on medical devices, amending Directive 2001/83/EC, Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 and Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 and repealing Council Directives 90/385/EEC and 93/42/EEC (OJ L 117, 5.5.2017, p.1).

     (2)The following Appendix 12 is added:

     MTS reminds related companies to timely follow upon new laws and regulations, produce and export according to requirements, and pay attention to the requirements of the declaration of conformity. Scientific safety assessments must be carried out during the product design phase to the bulk production phase to ensure that relevant products meet the new regulatory requirements and avoid export risk.