On March 10, 2026, the National Institute of Chemical Safety (NICS) of South Korea issued Announcement No. 2026-3, introducing revisions to the Hazard Review Results of Chemical Substances originally published under Announcement No. 2025-30 on December 30, 2025. The revised announcement took immediate effect upon publication.
The revisions were made in accordance with Article 21 of the Act on the Registration and Evaluation of Chemicals and Article 28 of its Enforcement Rules. The objective is to promptly disclose hazard review outcomes for registered chemical substances and update information for substances that must now be publicly disclosed, including those whose statutory data protection periods have expired.
Prior to the final update, NICS released Announcement No. 2026-1 on January 30, 2026, inviting public comments on the proposed revisions. The consultation period ended on February 19, 2026, and the final announcement remains unchanged from the draft proposal.
Key Revisions
1. Disclosure of Substances with Expired Protection Periods
In Schedule 1 (New Chemical Substances), the specific names and CAS numbers of 67 new chemical substances have been disclosed. These substances were previously confidential but became eligible for disclosure following the expiration of their statutory data protection periods in 2024. In addition, corrected information for two substances has been published due to earlier duplicate announcements (Inherent Numbers 2018-384 and 2019-530).
2. Addition of New Hazard Review Results
In Schedule 2 (Existing Chemical Substances), 56 substances that have completed hazard reviews have been added following Inherent Number 2025-714 (new entries 2026-715 to 2026-770). Each entry includes the substance’s unique identification number, chemical name, and CAS number, along with information on human hazard classification, labeling requirements, physicochemical properties, and detailed hazard data.
3. Updates to Existing Substance Information
Hazard data for five existing chemical substances listed in Schedule 2 (Inherent Numbers 2025-564, 2025-568, 2025-575, 2025-599, and 2025-603) have been revised and updated.
4. Publication of Completed Hazard Review List
As part of the standard procedure, the complete list of chemical substances that have undergone hazard reviews has been published. The list includes substance names with CAS numbers, hazard classification status, and key hazard characteristics.
Compliance Advisory
Companies operating in South Korea should promptly review the updated lists to determine whether any substances they manufacture, import, or use are included. If a substance is newly classified as hazardous or if its classification has changed, companies must update Safety Data Sheets (SDS) and product labels accordingly to maintain compliance with national chemical management regulations.
