EU PFHxA Restrictions Take Effect for Consumer Mixtures and Other Products
New European Union restrictions on perfluorohexanoic acid, its salts and PFHxA-related substances take effect Oct. 10, creating a new compliance deadline relevant to suppliers of coatings and other formulated products intended for the general public.
Commission Regulation (EU) 2024/2462 amended Annex XVII of REACH to establish Entry 79 covering PFHxA, its salts and related substances. Beginning Oct. 10, covered products may not be placed on the market or used at concentrations equal to or greater than 25 parts per billion for the sum of PFHxA and its salts or 1,000 ppb for the sum of PFHxA-related substances, measured in homogeneous material.
The Oct. 10 restrictions apply to textiles, leather, furs and hides used in clothing and related accessories for the general public; footwear for the general public; paper and cardboard used as food-contact materials; mixtures intended for the general public; and cosmetics. The consumer-mixture provision is particularly relevant to formulators evaluating PFHxA-related chemistry in products offered to consumers.
The regulation includes several exclusions and transition provisions. Personal protective equipment in specified high-risk categories, certain medical and in-vitro diagnostic devices and textiles used as construction textiles are excluded from the applicable textile restrictions. Products and mixtures that were already placed on the market before Oct. 10, 2026, are also covered by a derogation from the new Oct. 10 provision.
Additional PFHxA deadlines apply to other product categories. Certain firefighting foams used for training, testing and public fire services became subject to restrictions April 10, 2026. A broader restriction affecting other textiles, leather, furs and hides for the general public begins Oct. 10, 2027, while restrictions on firefighting foams used in civil aviation begin Oct. 10, 2029.
The European Commission adopted the measure as a targeted restriction after determining that releases and exposure associated with specified PFHxA uses were not adequately controlled. It is separate from the much broader restriction proposal covering a large group of PFAS that remains under EU evaluation.
For coatings manufacturers, the distinction is important. The Oct. 10 deadline does not constitute a universal ban on PFHxA or PFAS in all industrial coatings. Applicability depends on the product, intended market and use covered by Entry 79.
Source: EUR-Lex, Commission Regulation (EU) 2024/2462
PFAS-related restrictions continue to affect raw-material selection and reformulation decisions across coatings and related markets. The Oct. 10 PFHxA deadline creates an immediate compliance consideration for coatings and other chemical mixtures supplied to the general public while additional EU PFAS regulatory activity continues.
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