Highlights

• EU expands ban on PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals’ across industries.
• ECHA proposal targets wider PFAS restrictions in Europe.
• REACH reform to phase out PFAS under new EU chemical rules.

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has expanded its proposal to restrict the use of “forever chemicals” (PFAS).

This comes as part of a larger overhaul of the EU’s main chemical safety law, REACH, which is due for revision in December 2025. The update adds several new industrial and commercial sectors to the scope of the ban, making it one of the most far-reaching restrictions on PFAS in the world.

PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) have been produced since the 1940s and are valued for their resistance to water, grease, and heat. They are widely used in non-stick cookware, waterproof clothing, semiconductors, firefighting foams, and other products.

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However, because they do not naturally break down in the environment, they are labelled as forever chemicals. Scientific studies link PFAS exposure to liver disease, hormonal disruption, and cancers, raising major health and environmental concerns.

The original proposal to restrict PFAS was submitted in January 2023 by five countries: Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden.

After receiving over 5,600 public comments, the group revised its plan, expanding it to cover printing, sealing, machinery applications, medical packaging, pharmaceutical excipients, military uses, explosives, technical textiles, solvents, and catalysts. This broadens the number of industries that could face restrictions.

While the main goal is a near-total phaseout of PFAS, the plan allows for time-limited exemptions in sectors like healthcare, defence, electronics, energy, and transport, where no alternatives are yet available. ECHA is also considering flexible regulatory options, meaning PFAS could still be used in specific cases if risks are strictly controlled.

The broader REACH reform aims to modernise and simplify EU chemical rules, introducing measures like time-limited registration validity, mandatory dossier updates, digital safety data sheets, and stronger enforcement.

Early drafts of these changes were already shared in April 2025, and the European Commission is expected to present the formal proposal by December 2025.

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In the meantime, sector-specific bans, such as the ban on PFAS in firefighting foams, are moving ahead separately. Together, the updated ECHA proposal and upcoming REACH reform mark a major step in EU chemical regulation and potentially shape Europe’s chemicals policy for decades.

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Source: euronews