On January 14, 2025, the Solid Waste and Chemical Management Center (SCC) officially issued the "Notice on Submitting the Annual Activity Report for New Chemical Substances for 2024." CIRS Group respectfully reminds all enterprises registered with new chemical substances to ensure that the submission of the 2024 annual activity report by the designated deadline is incorporated into their New Year work plans.

On January 3, 2025, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) broadened the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) by incorporating nine more per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), as per the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2020. This update elevates the count of PFAS on the TRI to 205.

The 42nd amendment of the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code, issued by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), came into effect on January 1, 2025, with a transition period of one year. It will be mandatorily enforced starting January 1, 2026. This new revision includes additional UN numbers related to vehicles powered by lithium-ion batteries, lithium metal batteries, and sodium-ion batteries.

January 21, 2025, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has officially announced the 33rd batch of 5 substances of very high concern (SVHC), bringing the total number of substances on the SVHC list (also known as the Candidate List) to 247.

Recently, under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and related regulations, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the listing of five chemical substances as high-priority substances for risk assessment. This decision took effect on December 18, 2024.

Recently, Chile has officially released its first national chemical inventory. This inventory was guided by the European Union's "REACH" regulations (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals). With its publication, Chile becomes the first country in Latin America to have a national chemical inventory. The inventory includes harmful substances for industrial use notified under Decree No. 57/2021, with an extended deadline until September 30, 2024.

Recently, South Korea's Ministry of Environment announced the approval of 15 biocidal products closely related to daily life, under the Consumer Chemical Products and Biocides Safety Act (K-BPR). These products include disinfectants, algicides, rodenticides, insecticides, and repellents.

On December 23, 2023, the Turkish Ministry of Environment, Urbanization, and Climate Change (MoEUCC) officially issued an amendment to the KKDIK regulations, extending the registration deadline. Recently, the MoEUCC has increased the administrative fees required for KKDIK official registration for 2025. Previously in 2023 and 2024, Turkey also increased its administrative fee.

CIRS released the 2024 Global Chemical Regulation Progress Insight Report. This report, prepared by CIRS Group, covers the latest developments in global chemical regulations and information related to sustainable development, including: Updates on chemical management regulations in China, the European Union, and other countries and regions; Progress on the GHS for chemical classification and labeling; Regulatory developments on PFAS; and Regulations and standards related to sustainable development.

On February 6, 2024, the Ministry of Environment of South Korea issued Order No. 20232, which includes revisions to certain parts of the K-REACH regulations.The notification threshold for the production/import volume of new substances has been increased from 0.1 tonnes per year to 1 tonne per year.