Amendments to the UK Cosmetics Regulation Notified to WTO

On 31 October 2025, the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) notified to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) an amendment to the Annexes of the UK Cosmetics Regulation (UKCR).

Below is a list of the relevant amendments.

• UV filter 4-methylbenzylidene camphor (4-MBC – CAS 38102-62-4) is added to Annex II of the UKCR and is therefore banned for use in cosmetic products. Its entry in Annex VI (list of permitted UV filters is removed).  The ‘placing on the market’ deadline is 15 July 2026; the ‘making available on the market’ (off-shelf) deadline is 15 January 2027.
• A list of 16 CMR substances is added to Annex II of the UKCR and are therefore banned for use in cosmetic products. Of these, one has an INCI name and is used in cosmetic products: trimethylbenzoyl diphenylphosphine oxide (TPO – CAS 75980-60-8).  The ‘placing on the market’ deadline is 15 August 2026; the ‘making available on the market’ (off-shelf) deadline is 15 February 2027.
  • Companies are reminded of the GB interpretation of ‘making available’ in GB in this news item. 
• The preamble to Annex V (list of permitted preservatives) is amended in regard to the labelling requirements for formaldehyde-releasing preservatives: “All finished products containing substances in this Annex and which release formaldehyde must be labelled with the warning ‘releases formaldehyde’ where the concentration of formaldehyde in the finished product exceeds 0.001%”. The ‘placing on the market’ deadline is 15 July 2026; the ‘making available on the market’ (off-shelf) deadline is 15 January 2027.

The draft legislation is open for comments until 30 December 2025.