Spot check of EU market: found one quarter of imported products are not in compliance

On 22 September 2020, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) issued a notice on its website stating that national law enforcement and customs inspectors in 16 member states had inspected nearly 1,400 products, of which more than 300 were not in compliance with REACH.These countries inspect products at airports and ports, as well as inland customs offices.

Most inspections relate to the obligations of restricted substances in annex 17 to REACH, focusing on the presence of restricted substances in products such as cadmium, lead and nickel.Of the 1,225 inspections, 17 per cent of the products contained more than the required limit.Cadmium in jewelry has the highest rejection rate.The majority of non-compliant products detected in the tests came from China (74%), as well as the United Arab Emirates, India, Thailand, Northern Macedonia and Madagascar.The sampled products include imitation jewelry, vacuum bottles, semi-precious stones, watches, pocket watches and other watches, toys, plastic shoes, plastic bags and plastic LIDS, etc.

The spot checks show that exporters and importers must ensure that products entering the EU market comply with REACH.Eu countries have also shown that they still need to enforce these specific restrictions more effectively and to enforce REACH more strictly at the entrance to Europe.

About REACH Regulations

REACH stands for registration, assessment, authorization and restriction of chemicals. It is an EU regulation that came into force on 1 June 2007 with the aim of improving the protection of human health and the environment.In principle, REACH applies to all chemicals.These chemicals are not only used in industry, but also in our daily life, such as cleaning products, paints, clothes, furniture and electrical appliances.As a result, the regulation affects most businesses that sell in the EU.REACH places the burden of proof on companies, which must identify and manage the risks associated with the substances and articles they produce and sell in the EU in order to comply with the regulations.

GST reminds relevant enterprises to control the restricted substances in export products and avoid legal risks.We have a professional technical team to track the latest development of regulations and standards for you, and help you to develop the most comprehensive and economical test plan.If you have any questions about REACH or other product compliance, please feel free to contact us.