Percentage of REACH CLP-compliant cases found in imported goods (Indicator)

Key messages: Data show that once risk management measures under the REACH and CLP regulations are set up on imported goods, Member State authorities check their implementation. Compliance with the REACH and CLP regulations reported for imported goods has declined over the years, reaching a minimum of 71% in 2018, however the reason for this is not clearly understood.

Level of compliance (%) with REACH and CLP in imported goods in the EU, 2008-2019

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The indicator provides insight into the extent of duty holder compliance for imported goods with the REACH Regulation and the CLP Regulation. A duty holder is a person or an organisation with legal obligations to ensure health and safety in certain situations, such as in workplaces. Under the REACH and CLP regulations, duty holders are either importers, manufacturers, downstream users or distributors of substances. Their specific duties and responsibilities may vary depending on the context and regulations that apply.

Compliance with REACH and CLP reported in imported goods has declined over the years to a minimum of 71% in 2018. The figure shows that imports by Member States between 2015 and 2019 show a higher level of compliance for REACH than CLP. The total number of controls has remained roughly stable, with 5,775 controls reported in 2019. The decrease in compliance presents a challenge to the objective of stepping up risk management measures for hazardous chemical imports. Further updates to this indicator may provide additional information on the trend.

The decrease in compliance may be due to enforcement authorities being more effective in finding non-compliant substances/products/companies. In addition, more non-compliant substances/products may be entering the EU market. More data are needed to determine which reason is the most relevant.

Please consult the relevant indicators and signals below for a more comprehensive overview on the topic.

Data on the number of controls and number of non- compliant controls are provided by the countries in their reports to the European Commission every five years. A combined rate of non-compliance with imports for REACH and CLP was calculated in the period 2008-2014, as the amount of data was rather low. However, for the period 2015-2019, a distinction between REACH and CLP is possible. The indicator is then calculated as the median of the reported compliance values by all countries each year. Data required include the total number of cases of non-compliance on REACH and CLP duties for imported goods in the EU per year.

A value of 100 means that all controls have been found compliant and is the maximum value that this indicator may take. A value of zero means that all controls are found non-compliant.

References and footnotes

EU, 2006, Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2006 concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH), establishing a European Chemicals Agency, amending Directive 1999/45/EC and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 793/93 and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1488/94 as well as Council Directive 76/769/EEC and Commission Directives 91/155/EEC, 93/67/EEC, 93/105/EC and 2000/21/EC (OJ L 396, 30.12.2006, pp. 1-849).
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EU, 2008, Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures, amending and repealing Directives 67/548/EEC and 1999/45/EC, and amending Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 (Text with EEA relevance) (OJ L 353, 31.12.2008, pp. 1-1355).
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Percentage of REACH CLP-compliant cases found in imported goods (Indicator)

Level of compliance (%) with REACH and CLP in imported goods in the EU, 2008-2019

Relevant objectives under the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability

Other relevant indicators and signals

References and footnotes