June monthly roundup

EU

PPWR — Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation starts to bite

The EU’s new Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation reshapes how cosmetic packaging is designed, composed, labelled and recycled. It applies directly in every Member State, so requirements are harmonised across the bloc. Cosmetics is among the most exposed sectors given the variety of formats — bottles, tubes, jars, pumps, aerosols, cartons, samples and multi-material packs all need assessing.

• Timeline: Many provisions begin to apply from August 2026; all packaging on the EU market must be recyclable by 2030.
• Also watch: Tighter limits on substances of concern, including PFAS in coatings, inks, adhesives and supplier components; “recyclable” claims must be demonstrable, not assumed.
• Action: Start a packaging audit now — map formats against recyclability criteria and screen the supply chain for PFAS risk.

D4 / D5 / D6 — rinse-off ban now in force

Regulation (EU) 2024/1328 amended Annex XVII of REACH to restrict the cyclosiloxanes D4, D5 and D6. The rinse-off restriction took effect this month.

• In force: From 6 June 2026, D4, D5 and D6 are prohibited in rinse-off cosmetics at ≥0.1% by weight (the D4/D5 limit has applied since 31 January 2020).
• Next: The same restriction extends to leave-on products from 6 June 2027.
• Action: Confirm rinse-off formulas and raw materials are compliant; begin reformulating any leave-on products still relying on these siloxanes.

Octocrylene — REACH restriction moves forward

France’s REACH proposal would restrict finished cosmetics containing octocrylene at 0.001% w/w or higher, driven by environmental risk to aquatic organisms and groundwater. Both ECHA scientific committees have now weighed in.

• Status: RAC adopted its supporting opinion on 4 June 2026; on 17 June 2026 ECHA opened a 60-day consultation on the SEAC draft opinion.
• Deadline: The SEAC consultation is open for comments until 17 August 2026.
• Action: Brands using octocrylene as a UV filter should model exposure to alternative filters and prepare comments if the restriction would materially affect their portfolio.

ECHA RAC (77th meeting) — new CMR / endocrine-disruptor opinions

ECHA published the minutes of the 77th RAC meeting held in early June 2026. Opinions were adopted on four cosmetic-relevant ingredients: two were classified as CMRs and one as an endocrine disruptor, while the octocrylene restriction was endorsed.

• Substances: Trifluoroacetic Acid, Carvone, Resorcinol and Octocrylene.
• Action: Track the formal CLP adoption of these classifications, since a CMR 1A/1B classification can trigger an Article 15 ban in cosmetics.

Methylparaben — France revives a CLH proposal

On 3 June 2026, ECHA flagged France’s renewed intention to propose a harmonised classification (CLH) for the preservative methylparaben. It is currently restricted under Annex V/12 of Regulation 1223/2009 (max 0.4% alone, 0.8% in paraben mixtures) and is not yet listed in Annex VI of CLP.

• Action: Monitor the dossier; a CMR classification would have wide reformulation implications given how common methylparaben is.

SCCS — three ingredients move through the pipeline

The Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety advanced several fragrance and active-ingredient files this month:

• Acetophenone: Preliminary opinion (4 May 2026) concludes it is safe up to 100 ppm (0.01%) as a constituent of Natural Complex Substances — public comments close 6 July 2026.
• Cyclamen Aldehyde: On 8 June 2026 the SCCS accepted a mandate to assess this fragrance ingredient, which faces a CMR 1B classification (opinion due within nine months).
• Phytonadione Epoxide (Vitamin K1 oxide): On 25 June 2026 the SCCS accepted a mandate to assess this skin-conditioning active (opinion due within twelve months).
• Action: If you use any of these, prepare exposure data now; the acetophenone window in particular is closing on 6 July.

Omnibus VI — trilogue agreement reached

On the evening of 16 June 2026, the Commission, Council and Parliament reached a political agreement on Omnibus VI, the package intended to simplify the requirements applicable to chemicals. The deal clears the way for the text to be published.

• Action: Watch for the final text and assess where the simplification touches cosmetic obligations (e.g. CLP, Article 15 processes).

Animal testing — Commission publishes its roadmap

Responding to the “Save cruelty-free cosmetics” European Citizens’ Initiative, the Commission published (2 June 2026) its roadmap to reduce animal testing in the safety assessment of chemicals, with implementation starting immediately. It sets milestones toward an animal-free regulatory system across REACH, the Biocidal Products Regulation and related legislation.

• Action: Track the milestones if you commission safety testing; new-approach methodologies (NAMs) are increasingly the expected route.

France — national derogation on destroying unsold goods

On 29 June 2026 the Commission published Decision (EU) 2026/1435, approving France’s stricter national rules on the destruction of unsold consumer goods even though they diverge from the EU “Ecodesign” Regulation (EU) 2024/1781. France’s AGEC rules, in force since 1 January 2022, cover several cosmetic categories and require unsold products to be reused, repurposed or recycled rather than destroyed.

• Relevance: Companies selling cosmetics in France remain bound by the tougher national regime.

UK

New restrictions confirmed — two deadlines this summer

The UK’s Cosmetic Products (Restriction of Chemical Substances) Regulations 2026, notified to the WTO by the OPSS and now adopted, amend the GB Cosmetics Regulation. Two enforcement waves land in quick succession, with sell-through periods running into 2027.

• 15 July 2026: 4-MBC (Enzacamene) is banned (removed from the permitted UV-filter list); and the formaldehyde-releaser labelling threshold drops sharply — the “releases formaldehyde” warning is now required above 0.001% (previously 0.05%). Sell-through to 15 January 2027.
• 15 August 2026: Sixteen substances newly classified as CMR under GB CLP are banned — the most commercially significant being TPO (trimethylbenzoyl diphenylphosphine oxide), widely used in nail products. Sell-through to 15 February 2027.
• Also coming: A “No. 2” amendment would add 13 further Annex II prohibitions (from 23 March 2027) and restrict hexyl salicylate in Annex III (placing on market from 15 August 2026).
• Action: Audit formulas and supplier specs for 4-MBC, TPO and the listed CMRs (including as impurities), reformulate where needed, and update PIFs, CPSRs and labels ahead of the GB deadlines.

USA

FDA adds bemotrizinol to the OTC Sunscreen Monograph

In the most significant US sunscreen development since the late 1990s, the FDA issued a Final Administrative Order (OTC000039, published 10 June 2026) adding bemitradine (INCI: bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine) to Monograph M020 as an authorised sunscreen active.

• Status: The FDA considers bemotrizinol GRASE (generally recognised as safe and effective) for adults and children six months and older; products can be marketed without prior approval.
• Conditions: Maximum concentration 6%, with a finished-product SPF of at least 2.
• Context: It is the first new active added to an OTC monograph under the streamlined CARES Act process, aligned with the administration’s MAHA sunscreen-innovation priority.
• Action: US-facing brands can now plan formulations around a broad-spectrum filter long available in the EU but new to the US market.

Canada

Fragrance-allergen labelling expands on 1 August 2026

Under amendment SOR/2024-63, Health Canada is aligning with EU practice on fragrance-allergen disclosure. The first 24 allergens have been required on labels since 12 April 2026 (above 0.01% in rinse-off and 0.001% in leave-on products).

• 1 August 2026: The list of declarable allergens jumps from 24 to 81 for new products.
• Transition: Products already on the market have until 1 August 2028 to comply. Concentration-range options for ingredient disclosure also expand from 7 to 13.
• Action: Re-screen fragrance compositions against the 81-allergen list and update labels and INCI disclosure for new launches.

Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist — revised list expected

Health Canada’s consultation on proposed Hotlist updates closed on 17 February 2026; the revised Hotlist is now pending publication. Proposed changes (driven by CMP/CEPA assessments) would tighten several entries.

• Proposed: PHMB (Polyaminopropyl Biguanide) prohibited in sprays/aerosols and capped elsewhere; Basic Violet 4 and Basic Blue 7 restricted; Brucine and its salts, and Symphytum spp., prohibited; furocoumarins restricted in leave-on products.
• Action: Pre-emptively review formulas against the proposed conditions so reformulation is ready when the final Hotlist publishes.