What is an SVHC?
A Substance of Very High Concern (SVHC), refers to any substance that has adverse effects on human health and the environment. The following substances may be included in Annex XIV according to Article 57 under REACH:
How can I achieve SVHC compliance in accordance with REACH?
First, you need to identify all possible hazardous substances in your products and find out which list they belong to (SVHC candidate list, restriction list, or authorisation list). You can do so by carrying out SVHC tests yourself or asking your suppliers to carry out tests.
Then you could adopt the following measures to achieve REACH compliance if an SVHC is present in your products:
SVHC Notification: Submit notification to the European Chemical Agency (ECHA) if any SVHC on the candidate list is present in an article with a concentration above 0.1% weight by weight (w/w) and the total amount of the SVHC exceeds 1 ton per annum per producer or importer.
Communication Requirement: If any SVHC on the candidate list is present in your product with a concentration above 0.1% (w/w), you are obliged to inform the recipients of the article along the supply chain about the chemical name(s) and how the article can be used safely. REACH further requires this information is made available within 45 days upon consumer request.
Restriction: Article suppliers not only need to comply with the requirements of SVHCs, but they also need to comply with the requirements of REACH Restriction. Some candidate SVHCs are also on the REACH restricted substances list (Annex XVII to REACH). Parties involved must screen the REACH restriction list for the restriction most relevant to the products and ensure that the presence of restricted substances in the products does not exceed threshold limits set by REACH;
Authorisation: Priority SVHCs on the candidate list will be included in Annex XIV of REACH. Those SVHCs will not be allowed to be used, placed on the market, or imported into the EU after a date is set, unless the company is granted an authorisation.
Comparison between the list of SVHCs and Annex XIV
The list of SVHCs is updated twice every year (in June and December). It serves as a candidate list for Annex XIV (also known as "List of Substances Subject to Authorisation").
Here is a brief comparison between the two lists.
| List of SVHCs | List of Authorised Substances | |
| Included in the REACH Regulation? | No | Yes. Annex XIV |
| Obligation | Notification and communication (See more details above) | None |
| Total | 241 | 59 |
| Note | Candidate list of Annex XIV | These substances cannot be placed on the market or used after a given date, unless an authorisation is granted for their specific use, or the use is exempted from Authorisation. The authorized substances may be included in Annex XVII (List of Restricted Substances) after the sunset date. |
Updates on SVHCs List
The SVHCs List (Candidate List) now contains 247 substances.