Safety data sheet for non-hazardous products: when you still have to supply one

Classification decides, not how the product looks

Art. 31(1) REACH requires a safety data sheet for substances and mixtures classified as hazardous under CLP, for PBT and vPvB substances and for substances on the candidate list. A substance on the candidate list therefore needs a sheet even when it is otherwise not classified.

If your mixture is not classified, no mandatory sheet arises. Paragraph 3 adds a second case: the sheet on request.

Three cases make the sheet mandatory on request

One case is enough. What counts is the individual concentration of each substance, not the sum.

• A substance with a health or environmental hazard at 1 % by weight or more in a non-gaseous mixture, 0.2 % by volume in a gaseous one (Art. 31(3)(a))
• At 0.1 % by weight or more in a non-gaseous mixture: a substance that is carcinogenic category 2, toxic to reproduction category 1A, 1B or 2, a skin or respiratory sensitiser category 1, has effects on or via lactation, is PBT or vPvB, or is on the candidate list (Art. 31(3)(b))
• A substance with a Union workplace exposure limit, with no threshold stated (Art. 31(3)(c))

Who can ask and what you supply

The recipient, your business customer, can ask. No sheet has to go to the general public if sufficient information is provided otherwise; downstream users and distributors can still request one (Art. 31(4)).

The sheet on request is a full Annex II sheet with 16 sections, free of charge, on paper or electronically (Art. 31(8)). Paragraph 3 sets no deadline for the answer. New versions follow the usual rule: recipients of the last 12 months get them (Art. 31(9)).

Without a sheet you still pass on information

For substances on their own and in mixtures that need no sheet, Art. 32 applies. The supplier tells the recipient, among other things, whether the substance is subject to authorisation, which authorisations were granted or refused in the supply chain and which restrictions under Title VIII apply, plus the available information the recipient needs for appropriate risk management. A plain letter is enough.

Articles follow Art. 33 instead: if they contain a candidate list substance above 0.1 % by weight, you inform the recipient. Finished cosmetics and food for end users are outside CLP classification (Art. 1(5) CLP); their raw materials are not.

Answering a request in five steps

• Check the CLP classification. If the mixture is classified, the sheet is mandatory anyway.
• Check the formula against the three cases in Art. 31(3).
• If one applies, have a competent person compile a sheet under Annex II.
• If none applies, give the Art. 32 information in writing and explain why no sheet is due.
• Keep request and answer. Art. 36 requires REACH information to be kept for at least 10 years.

Voluntary sheets

Many suppliers send a sheet for unclassified products because customers ask for it. We know of no rule against that. If you send one, maintain it like a mandatory sheet: section 2 states that there is no classification, the revision date is on the first page, and new information leads to a new version. That is our recommendation, not a legal requirement.

Frequently asked questions