EC Inventory

The EC Inventory is the central repository for substance identification in the EU, maintained by ECHA. It comprises three legacy lists: EINECS (existing substances on the market before 1981), ELINCS (new substances notified after 1981), and the NLP (No-Longer Polymers) list. It currently includes over 100,000 substances, covering the chemical names, EC numbers, CAS numbers, substance descriptions, and molecular formula, etc. It serves as the primary reference for identifying chemicals and determining their regulatory status under REACH and CLP.

Following the expiration of the REACH late pre-registration deadline on May 31, 2018, compliance obligations under the EU REACH Regulation apply irrespective of whether a chemical substance is listed in the EC Inventory. The mandatory requirements are as follows:
1. Registration: chemical substances—whether standalone, in mixtures, or in articles—must be registered with ECHA if manufactured or imported into the EU at 1 tonne or more per year. Failure to register results in a ban on manufacturing the substance in, or importing it to the EU.
2. Downstream Communication and Additional Obligations:
for registered substances with annual volumes exceeding 10 tonnes, registrants must communicate an extended Safety Data Sheet (eSDS) to downstream users where applicable conditions are met.
Certain substances are further subject to additional obligations, including evaluation, notification, authorization, or restriction procedures.
3. CLP Regulation Compliance: All substances and mixtures must fully comply with the EU Classification, Labelling and Packaging (CLP) Regulation prior to being placed on the market.

As some of the chemical substances are only marked with EC No., they need to be further checked according to key information like 'chemical name'. Whether the substances are listed on EC inventory or not, corresponding REACH obligations, such as registration, shall be completed before placing them on the EU market. Welcome to contact REACH24H for more details.