Defra announces new UK REACH registration submission deadlines

The UK government has announced that it intends to introduce legislation to extend the registration submission deadlines across all tonnage bands by three years through the UK Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) Regulation (subject to the consent of the Scottish and Welsh governments).

The UK government will also legislate to extend the statutory dates for compliance checks so that they do not precede the data submission dates. Ricardo can support you through the complexities of UK REACH and help you understand what these extensions mean for you. Contact us today.

Why are these changes to REACH being implemented?

This was done in response to concerns raised by stakeholders around the cost of acquiring the data to complete their UK REACH registrations, and the impact on GB businesses.

It was recognised by government that developing a new model is highly complex and any changes to the UK REACH model would require extensions to the transitional deadlines in order to allow sufficient time for legislative and operational changes to be made and for organisations to comply.

The deadlines are now confirmed as:

October 2026

• Substances included on the EU REACH candidate list before UK REACH came into effect.
• Substances that are carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic for reproduction and manufactured or imported in quantities of one tonne or more per year. 
• Substances that are very toxic to aquatic life and manufactured or imported in quantities of 100 times or more per year.
• All substances manufactured or imported in quantities of 1,000 tonnes or more per year.

October 2028

• Substances added to the UK REACH candidate list before the 2023 submission deadline.
• All substances manufactured or imported in quantities of 100 tonnes or more per year.

October 2030

• All substances manufactured or imported in quantities of one tonne or more per year. 

Who does this deadline apply to?

The requirement to register a substance under UK REACH applies to any chemical substance, whether manufactured or imported as a pure substance, within a mixture, or within a manufactured article (if the substance is intended to be released during normal and reasonably foreseeable conditions of use of the article). 

The transitional deadlines for UK REACH apply to companies who were registrants, downstream users, or distributors under EU REACH before UK REACH was introduced.

Provisions have been put in place under UK REACH for existing manufacturers or import of chemicals, which are now subject to three key processes:

• Option to ‘grandfather’ existing EU REACH registrations into UK REACH (GB legal entities only).
• Option to complete Downstream User Import Notification (DUIN).
• Deadlines to complete a full registration, with specific deadlines related to specific tonnage bands and hazard profiles.

These deadlines do not apply to any new manufacturing or import activities, or where registrations under EU REACH were not already in place. Any new registrations, including those where grandfathering or DUIN do not apply, must be completed in full before the substance can be imported into GB at greater than one tonne per annum. 

How Ricardo can help

Ricardo is a well-established British business with close links to the UK Government. Since 1973, we have provided chemical safety, emergency response, and regulatory compliance support to chemical producers, manufacturers, distributors, transporters and users globally. 

From our legal entities in the UK and Europe we support organisations across the world to manage the impact of UK REACH on their business, navigate the complexities of UK REACH, and significantly reduce their costs of compliance. 

Learn more about how to comply with UK REACH >