Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH)

Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) is a European Union regulation dating from 1 June 2007. REACH addresses the production and use of chemical substances and any potential impacts on both human health and the environment.

REACH applies to all chemical substances, including metals, which are manufactured, imported, placed on the market or used within the European Community. It has implications for producers, importers, formulators, distributors and users of chemicals, as well as those producing and/or importing articles. The regulation is explained in greater detail in the boxes below, any company wanting to register should be made aware of their responsibilities and duties.

The International Tin Association acts as Secretariat for the consortium which manages work on REACH for tin metal. A substantial amount of new data was generated for tin metal in the early stages of REACH. The tests showed negative results in human health tests, leading tin metal to be unclassified and non-toxic. In 2016, further toxicology testing of pure tin powder for effects on reproduction demonstrated no effects and this encouraging result was submitted to the European Chemical Agency (ECHA). Further tests may be requested by the authorities relating to both human health and the environment but up to this time no toxic effects have been observed, and tin remains one of the few metals which are unclassified for any hazardous properties.

Tin metal is required to be registered under REACH law. Details on how to do this can be found on the ‘How to Register’ tab below.

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