On 16 June 2026, the European Parliament and the Council reached a provisional political agreement on the remaining part of the “Omnibus VI” package on chemicals, which forms part of the EU’s broader regulatory simplification and competitiveness agenda. The text covers three instruments: Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 on the classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures[1] (hereinafter “CLP”), Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products[2] (hereinafter “Cosmetics”), and Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 on fertilising products[3]. According to the Council, these amendments constitute the final part of the Omnibus VI package applicable to chemicals and are intended to reduce compliance costs, while maintaining a high level of consumer and environmental protection.
1. Cosmetics: regulation of CMR substances and preservation of safeguards
The first part concerns cosmetic products containing substances classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic to reproduction, known as CMR substances. The co-legislators agreed on a differentiated system of transitional periods to organise the gradual withdrawal of these substances, with deadlines adapted to the level of risk. The Parliament states that cosmetics containing prohibited CMR substances will have to be withdrawn from the market more quickly than initially proposed by the Commission.
The Parliament indicates that, where the substance is not defended through an application for exemption, cosmetic products containing prohibited CMR substances will have to be withdrawn from the market within shortened deadlines: six months to cease placing them on the market and twelve months to end their making available on the market, compared with twelve and twenty-four months respectively under the Commission’s initial proposal.
The agreement also provides that the Commission will publish guidance on alternative substances, in order to help companies identify relevant substitution solutions. It also maintains a prior notification obligation for cosmetic products containing nanomaterials before they are placed on the market.
Operators will therefore need to identify formulas containing substances that may be affected by a CMR classification, anticipate possible reformulations and monitor the Commission’s future guidelines.
2. CLP: more flexible labelling rules, while preserving legibility
The second part concerns the CLP Regulation. The amendments mainly relate to formatting requirements and the frequency with which labelling information must be updated. The agreement provides for greater flexibility, in particular in business-to-business relationships, while maintaining enhanced safeguards for products intended for the general public.
The co-legislators notably validated minimum legibility requirements for labels, wider use of digital labelling and certain derogations for small containers. For the smallest packaging formats, certain information may be provided digitally, provided that essential hazard information remains available, in particular on the outer packaging. Hazard pictograms remain a central element of consumer information.
The agreement also clarifies the deadlines for updating labels where a new evaluation results in a more severe classification of the product. In such cases, suppliers would have fifteen months to update the labels, replacing the more general requirement to update them “without undue delay” proposed by the Commission. This change is intended to provide suppliers with greater legal certainty by replacing broad wording with more predictable deadlines.
3. Fertilising products: simplified access to CE marking and interaction with REACH
The third part concerns the Fertilising Products Regulation. The agreement aims to modernise the requirements applicable to components used in fertilising products, particularly where certain materials do not easily fit within the existing categories of component materials. The Council refers in particular to micro-organisms, animal by-products, polymers and other substances or materials that are difficult to register under the current framework.
The approach adopted is therefore one of targeted simplification. However, substances subject to a harmonised classification as particularly harmful will remain subject to a registration obligation under REACH[4]. The simplification will therefore not benefit substances presenting the highest risks.
4. Timeline and next steps
The agreement remains provisional. It must now be approved by the European Parliament and the Council, and then undergo legal-linguistic revision before its formal adoption. The Council indicates that the co-legislators aim to reach final adoption in the course of 2026.
As regards application, it will be necessary to wait for the final text published in the Official Journal. However, the Council specifies that the agreement is linked to the so-called “stop-the-clock” mechanism and provides for the application dates of the three regulations concerned to be aligned to 1 January 2030.
[1] Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures, amending and repealing Directives 67/548/EEC and 1999/45/EC, and amending Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006.
[2] Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on cosmetic products.
[3] Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 laying down rules on the making available on the market of EU fertilising products and amending Regulations (EC) No 1069/2009 and (EC) No 1107/2009 and repealing Regulation (EC) No 2003/2003.
[4] Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2006 concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH), establishing a European Chemicals Agency, amending Directive 1999/45/EC and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 793/93 and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1488/94 as well as Council Directive 76/769/EEC and Commission Directives 91/155/EEC, 93/67/EEC, 93/105/EC and 2000/21/EC.