EU agrees 2030 timeline for chemical labels and new cosmetics withdrawal rules

EU lawmakers align the regulatory timetable

The Council of the European Union and the European Parliament have reached a provisional political agreement on a package covering chemical classification and labeling, cosmetics and fertilizers. According to Telecinco, parts of the Classification, Labelling and Packaging Regulation, known as CLP, would apply from 2030. Implementation had already been postponed until 2028 and would now move back by another two years.

The revised timetable is intended to align the CLP requirements with changes to EU cosmetics and fertilizer legislation. The institutions say the broader reform will reduce administrative burdens while maintaining the existing level of health and environmental protection. Because the agreement remains provisional, the final legal text must still pass the remaining EU approval procedures before the new dates and obligations become binding.

Digital labels and small-package exemptions

The agreement makes some requirements for identifying chemical hazards and communicating them on labels more flexible. It retains digital labeling and introduces exemptions for certain small packages. When a new scientific assessment determines that a substance presents a higher level of danger, companies would have fifteen months to update the relevant product information.

Consumer-facing labels must remain fully legible, with minimum font sizes set for products sold to the general public. On very small packages, some risk information may be provided through digital codes, but essential warnings must remain on the outer packaging. The compromise therefore offers manufacturers more room to manage limited label space without removing the core safety information available at the point of purchase.

New deadlines for hazardous cosmetic ingredients

The cosmetics provisions address substances considered hazardous to health, including carcinogens, substances capable of causing genetic alterations and substances that may affect fertility or fetal development. Where a company does not apply to retain the use of a substance affected by a ban, it would have six months to stop placing the products on the market and no more than twelve months to withdraw them completely. Telecinco reports that these periods are shorter than those originally proposed by the European Commission.

The provisional agreement also rejects a Commission-proposed exemption that could have allowed some hazardous substances to remain in use depending on the route of exposure. It restores the obligation for companies to notify the European Commission before marketing cosmetics containing nanomaterials. For manufacturers and brand owners, these provisions require coordinated decisions on formulation, regulatory submissions, packaging inventories and the clearance of affected products through wholesale and retail channels.

Consumer group warns about exposure

The European Consumer Organisation, BEUC, has criticized the withdrawal timetable, arguing that it would weaken protection against hazardous substances by allowing affected products to remain available for longer. BEUC Director General Agustín Reyna said this could keep toothpaste, deodorant and lipstick containing toxic ingredients in consumers’ homes for longer.

BEUC nevertheless acknowledged that the final compromise removed some of the Commission proposal’s most problematic elements, including the route-of-exposure exemption. The package also retains registration for certain particularly harmful substances and strengthens the role of European scientific bodies in assessing new microorganisms and materials used in fertilizers. For cosmetics suppliers, the immediate task is to follow the agreement through formal adoption and map which formulas, labels and product notifications could be affected by the synchronized 2030 timetable.