EU - Ban on Microplastics Under REACH

From October 17, 2023, new Regulation on the use of intentionally added microplastic particles are into force in the European Union.

Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/2055 amending Annex XVII REACH as regards synthetic polymer microparticles was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on September 19, 2023. The Commission drafted this restriction Regulation on the basis of the ECHA report and the joint opinion of the committees.

This is an important step towards a cleaner environment. For a wide range of applications, the intentional addition of microplastic particles will no longer be allowed. This will ensure that as few persistent microplastic particles as possible are released into the environment.

As usual, the Regulation will enter into force 20 days after its publication and will therefore directly restrict cosmetics containing microbeads (microbeads as abrasive particles) as well as microplastics in toys, such as glitter in soap bubbles, from October 17, 2023.

With so many everyday products containing microplastics, the question now is what needs to be considered.

In order to give retailers and manufacturers enough time to develop alternatives and change production, the restrictions will be phased in for different applications (from 4 to 12 years). These include other cosmetics containing microplastics ('rinse-off'/'leave-on'), encapsulated fragrances, but also detergents, polishes and air fresheners.​