The EU regulatory framework REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation of Chemicals) entered into force on 1 June 2007. REACH Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 affects ‘new’ and ‘existing’ substances. Manufacturers and importers of existing chemicals (phase-in substances = normally on the market before September 1981) are enforced to register all chemicals of a production volume exceeding 1 t/a. Each registration submission will consist of a Technical Dossier and, for substances above 10 tonnes, a Chemical Safety Report (CSR). Failure to register will mean that the substance cannot be manufactured or imported (no data no market).

Chemicals had to be regularly preregistered from June 01, 2008 to December 01, 2008. Late pre-registration is still possible according to paragraph 6 of Article 28. (Contact our experts team to evaluate all possible options). Basic information such as the chemical name, CAS number and production volume are required and need to be submitted to the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) for the pre-registration.
The deadline for registration is depending on the yearly production level and the toxicity of the substances. The timelines for the registrations are summarised in the following table.

tonnes/year	timelines for registration
>1000	before December 01, 2010
>1 und CMR (Carcinogenic Mutagenic or Reprotoxic)	before December 01, 2010
>100 und R50/53 (dangerous for the aquatic environment)	before December 01, 2010
100-1000	before June 01, 2013
1-100	before June 01, 2018

Substances of very high concern (SVHC) need to be authorised for their use and their placing on the market. SVHC subject to authorisation will be put into Annex XIV of REACH following a decision by the European Commision.
Substances reqiured to be authorised are substances meeting the criteria for classification as carcinogenic or mutagenic or toxic for reproduction category 1 or 2 (CMR) or substances which are persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT) or very persistent and very bioaccumulative (vPvB). Further, substances causing probable serious effects to humans or the environment equal to those above, such as endocrine disrupters are required to be authorised.