SGS, the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company, is advising stakeholders that Japan is proposing to regulate perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS), its salts and PFHxS-related compounds under the ‘Act on the Evaluation of Chemical Substances and Regulation of Their Manufacture Etc.’ (also known as the Chemical Substances control Law (CSCL)).

The Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (WHLW), Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and Ministry of the Environment held a one-month consultation on the proposal that ended on March 19, 2023.

If accepted, provisions in the draft measure include:

• Manufacture and import of PFHxS and its salts prohibited from spring of 2024 by designation as Class 1 Specified Chemical Substances
• 10 specified products that use PFHxS, its salts or PFHxS-related compounds prohibited from import:

1. Fire extinguishers, fire extinguishing agents for fire extinguishers and foams
2. Etching agents used in metal processing
3. Surface treatment agents for plating or their mixture additives
4. Treated fabrics with water or oil repellent properties
5. Treated clothing with water or oil repellent properties
6. Treated floor coverings with water or oil repellent properties
7. Water and oil repellents and fiber protection agents
8. Anti-reflective agents used in the manufacture of semiconductors
9. Etching agents used in the manufacture of semiconductors
10. Resists for semiconductors

• Technical standards for handling firefighting foams established
• Use of PFHxS, its salts or PFHxS-related compounds without establishing essential use prohibited

Japan is one of many jurisdictions currently considering banning PFHxS, its salts and PFHxS-related compounds following the decision to add them to Stockholm Convention Annex A (elimination) without exemptions in June 2022.

SGS Chemical Testing

SGS offers a comprehensive range of testing services to help manufacturers and suppliers ensure their products are safe and comply with national and international regulations concerning harmful chemicals. In the end, it’s only trusted because it’s tested. Learn more about SGS Chemical Testing Services.

SGS SafeGuardS keep you up to date with the latest news and developments in the consumer goods industry. Read the full Japan Intends to Regulate PFHxS and PFHxS-related Compounds SafeGuardS.

Subscribe here to receive SGS SafeGuardS direct to your inbox.

For further information contact:

Dr. HingWo Tsang

Global Information and Innovation Manager

Tel: (+852) 2774 7420

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.sgs.com/cp 

LinkedIn: SGS Connectivity & Products

About SGS

We are SGS – the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company. We are recognized as the global benchmark for sustainability, quality and integrity. Our 97,000 employees operate a network of 2,650 offices and laboratories, working together to enable a better, safer and more interconnected world.

SGS, the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company, has published a SafeGuardS to help stakeholders understand the impact of the European Union (EU) Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).

The CSRD came into effect on January 5, 2023. It is the latest EU initiative to improve the quality and comparability of corporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) disclosures. It replaces and significantly expands the scope of existing sustainability reporting requirements under the Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD).

The CSRD applies to all large and listed companies on EU regulated markets. A large company can be defined as an EU company or an EU subsidiary of a non-EU company meeting two out of the three following criteria at its balance sheet date:

• Net turnover exceeding €40 million; and/or
• Balance sheet assets exceeding €20 million; and/or
• More than 250 employees on average during the financial year

Under the CSRD, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have a delayed compliance date. Micro-enterprises are excluded from complying with the directive.

SGS has published SafeGuardS 034.23 to give stakeholders an overview of the introduction of the CSRD and its impact on businesses.

EU member states must integrate the CSRD into their national law within 18 months of it coming into effect on January 5, 2023.

SGS Consumer Product Services

SGS provides news about the development of regulations affecting consumer products as a complimentary service. With an unrivalled global network of laboratories, they offer physical/mechanical testing, analytical testing and consultancy work for technical and non-technical parameters applicable to a comprehensive range of consumer products. In the end, it’s only trusted because it’s tested. Learn more about SGS’s Consumer Product Services.

SGS SafeGuardS keep you up to date with the latest news and developments in the consumer goods industry. Read the full EU Publishes Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) SafeGuardS.

Subscribe here to receive SGS SafeGuardS direct to your inbox.

For further information contact:

Louann Spirito

Consumer and Retail – Softlines

US & Canada Softlines Business Head

Tel: +1 973 461 7919

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Website: www.sgs.com/softlines

LinkedIn: SGS Connectivity & Products

About SGS

We are SGS – the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company. We are recognized as the global benchmark for sustainability, quality and integrity. Our 97,000 employees operate a network of 2,650 offices and laboratories, working together to enable a better, safer and more interconnected world.

SGS, the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company, has published a SafeGuardS covering a proposal issued by the New Zealand Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to restrict perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS), its salts and PFHxS-related compounds as a new persistent organic pollutant (POP).

The Stockholm Convention added these substances to Annex A (elimination) without exemptions in June 2022. The New Zealand consultation was then announced in February 2023, with comments being accepted until April 5, 2023.

If the proposal is accepted, PFHxS, its salts and PFHxS-related compounds will be added to Schedule 2A of the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996 (HSNO Act) by mid-November 2023.

Stakeholders should be aware, PFHxS, its salts and PFHxS-related compounds are a sub-category of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). They have been used in a wide variety of consumer goods, including:

• Firefighting foams
• Metal plating
• Water, grease and dirt protective coatings in textiles, leather, upholstery, paper and packaging materials
• Polishing and cleaning/washing agents
• Coatings and impregnation/proofing, such as those for protection from damp and fungus
• Manufacture of electronics and semiconductors

PFHxS has also been used as a substitute for perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) in some applications.

SGS Chemical Testing

SGS offers a comprehensive range of testing services to help manufacturers and suppliers ensure their products are safe and comply with national and international regulations concerning harmful chemicals. In the end, it’s only trusted because it’s tested. Learn more about SGS Chemical Testing Services.

SGS SafeGuardS keep you up to date with the latest news and developments in the consumer goods industry. Read the full New Zealand Consults Over Proposal to Regulate PFHxS and PFHxS-related Compounds SafeGuardS.

Subscribe here to receive SGS SafeGuardS direct to your inbox.

For further information contact:

Dr. HingWo Tsang

Global Information and Innovation Manager

Tel: (+852) 2774 7420

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.sgs.com/cp 

LinkedIn: SGS Connectivity & Products

About SGS

We are SGS – the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company. We are recognized as the global benchmark for sustainability, quality and integrity. Our 97,000 employees operate a network of 2,650 offices and laboratories, working together to enable a better, safer and more interconnected world.

SGS, the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company, is advising stakeholders that the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a final rule to revise formaldehyde rules for composite wood products.

Final Rule 88 FR 10468 was published on February 21, 2023. It revises the Formaldehyde Standards for Composite Wood Products Act, which added Title VI to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA Title VI).

Changes introduced by the latest Final Rule include:

• Several voluntary consensus standards updated
• Reference to section 6.2.2 under ISO/IEC 17065:2021 added, allowing external evaluation resources, such as contracting out inspections to a third party in order to complete the certification process
• Remote quarterly inspections by a third party certifier (TPC) formally accepted
• Intermediate range value of 0.038 and upper range value of 0.052 to the equation for when ASTM D6007-14 (small chamber) method added as considered equivalent to the ASTM E1333-14 (large chamber) method (§770.20 (d)(1)(iii))

SGS has published SafeGuardS 030.23 to help stakeholders understand the provisions in Final Rule 88 FR 10468. It includes a table detailing the new voluntary consensus standards and further details of the impact on remote quarterly inspections.

Stakeholders are advised to review original SafeGuardS 030.23 to stay informed on the changes and their impact.

The final rule came into effect on March 23, 2023.

SGS Chemical Testing

SGS offers a comprehensive range of testing services to help manufacturers and suppliers ensure their products are safe and comply with national and international regulations concerning harmful chemicals. In the end, it’s only trusted because it’s tested. Learn more about SGS Chemical Testing Services.

SGS SafeGuardS keep you up to date with the latest news and developments in the consumer goods industry. Read the full US EPA Issues Final Rule for Formaldehyde Emissions from Composite Wood Products SafeGuardS.

Subscribe here to receive SGS SafeGuardS direct to your inbox.

For further information contact:

Dr. HingWo Tsang

Global Information and Innovation Manager

Tel: (+852) 2774 7420

Melanie Schubert

Senior Technical Manager

Tel: +1 312 414 9394

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.sgs.com/hardlines

LinkedIn: SGS Connectivity & Products

About SGS

We are SGS – the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company. We are recognized as the global benchmark for sustainability, quality and integrity. Our 97,000 employees operate a network of 2,650 offices and laboratories, working together to enable a better, safer and more interconnected world.