Environmental Protection: Chemicals
EU chemicals policy - REACH
Questions and answers: Data confidentiality
What are the provisions for confidentiality of information in the REACH Regulation?
The following provisions are included:
REACH specifies what information will be published on the Agency website. A company can, however, under grounds of commercial confidentiality request that study summaries and robust study summaries, the purity of the substance, and the tonnage band are not placed on the website. The public, however, will still be able request such information under the access to information provisions, and the Agency will consider these in line with the Aarhus convention.
The only information which, if released, the Agency shall normally deem to undermine the commercial interests of a company, would be:
- the composition of a preparation
- the precise use of a substance or preparation
- the precise tonnage
- the links between a manufacturer and his downstream user
- the trade name(s) of the substance
- for a period of six years after registration, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) name for non-phase-in substances defined as dangerous under the Dangerous Substances Directive (67/548/EEC)
- the IUPAC name for dangerous substances, as defined by the Dangerous Substances Directive, that are only used:
- as an intermediate,
- in scientific research and/or
- in product and process-oriented research and development
The Safety Data Sheet would still contain the company name as set out in Title IV, which would be communicated down the supply chain.
Page published: 11 May 2007