ECHA regularly assesses the substances from the Candidate List to determine which ones should be included in the Authorisation List as a priority. The prioritisation is based on information on the intrinsic properties, wide dispersive use or high volumes that fall within the scope of the authorisation requirement. ECHA launches a three months consultation as part of the process.

The draft recommendation includes, amongst other things, this information:

• Sunset date from which the placing on the market and the use of a substance is prohibited, unless an authorisation is granted or the use is exempt from authorisation;
• Latest application date by which applications must be received if the applicant wants to continue placing the substance on the market or using it after the sunset date;
• Review periods for certain uses, if any;
• Uses exempted from the authorisation requirement, if any.

The Member State Committee prepares its opinion on the draft recommendation taking into account the comments received during the consultation.

The opinion of the committee and the comments received during the consultation will help ECHA finalise its recommendation. ECHA’s recommendation is submitted to the European Commission, who take the decision on the substances to be included in the Authorisation List.

Exemptions

There are some generic exemptions from the authorisation requirement. In addition to these generic exemptions, ECHA may propose substance and use-specific exemptions, where specific EU legislation already exists that provide the minimum requirements for the proper control of the risks to protect human health or the environment.

These exemptions are detailed in the recommendation that ECHA submits to the Commission.