The European Commission submitted a draft regulation to the World Trade Organization (WTO) proposing updates to four Annexes of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 (Cosmetics Regulation). These changes are based on recent safety evaluations by the Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS).

The proposed changes in the draft are:

1. List of Prohibited Ingredients: 1 revised and a new 1 added
– Triphenyl phosphate: currently not regulated. SCCS issued an opinion concluding that its safety could not be established due to insufficient data. The draft proposes listing as a prohibited ingredient.
– Silver zinc zeolite: currently listed under the prohibited ingredients list. Following a safety assessment, SCCS confirmed safe use as a preservative under specific conditions. The draft proposes to allow its conditional use.

2. List of Restricted Ingredients: 3 revised and 6 new added
– Water-soluble zinc salts, citral, and benzyl salicylate: currently permitted to use with specific restrictions. SCCS mentioned safety concerns for all three ingredients. The draft intends to impose more restrictions on their use.

The following ingredients, currently not restricted, are planned to be transferred to the restricted ingredients list:
– aluminium-containing ingredients;
– vetiveria zizanioides, ext.,
– acetylated;
– HC Blue 18;
– hydroxypropyl-p-phenylenediamine and its dihydrochloride salt;
– HC Yellow No. 16;
– HC Red No. 18.

3. List of Permitted Preservatives: 1 new added
– Silver zinc zeolite: SCCS confirmed that the ingredient is safe as a preservative under specific use conditions. The draft proposes to include into the permitted preservatives list.

4. List of Permitted UV Filters: 1 revised
– Diethylamino hydroxybenzoyl hexyl benzoate (DHHB): currently permitted as an UV filter. SCCS evaluated the presence of di-n-hexyl phthalate (DnHexP) as a production impurity in DHHB. Draft proposes tightening the impurity limit to 10 ppm (previously allowed up to 260 ppm; 1 ppm suggested as target but deemed economically burdensome).

The draft was open for comments until September 14, 2025, and scheduled for adoption in the first quarter of 2026.