PFHxA restriction now applies to EU consumer goods and cosmetics
The EU PFHxA restriction (REACH entry 79) applies from 10 October 2026 to clothing, footwear, paper food contact, consumer mixtures and cosmetics.
Since 10 October 2026, the PFHxA restriction applies to consumer clothing, footwear, paper and cardboard food contact materials, consumer mixtures and cosmetics. REACH Annex XVII entry 79 prohibits placing those goods on the market, or using them, at or above either limit: 25 ppb for the sum of PFHxA and its salts, or 1,000 ppb for the sum of PFHxA-related substances (entry 79).
Commission Regulation (EU) 2024/2462 of 19 September 2024 added the entry. It entered into force on 10 October 2024, but the limits come in by stages. Firefighting foams went first on 10 April 2026. A trade-press note on the paper and board stage appeared on 12 October 2026.
What the PFHxA restriction covers
This is a list of named uses, not a general manufacturing ban. The Commission said uses such as semiconductors, batteries and fuel cells for green hydrogen are not affected.
The entry covers PFHxA (undecafluorohexanoic acid), its salts and PFHxA-related substances with a linear or branched C5F11- group directly attached to another carbon atom, or a C6F13- group. A PFHxA-related substance is any substance whose molecular structure can degrade or transform to PFHxA. C6F14 and C6F13-C(=O)OH are excluded. Check the rest of the exclusion list in the entry 79 text.
The two limits
Either sum is enough. Do not merge the two sums into one threshold (Regulation 2024/2462):
- 25 ppb (25 µg/kg) for the sum of PFHxA and its salts
- 1,000 ppb (1 mg/kg) for the sum of PFHxA-related substances
For paragraphs 1 and 2, measure each homogeneous material (entry 79). Agree the test method with your lab before you rely on a result.
Application dates by use
| Para | Use | Applies from |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | Firefighting foams and concentrates for training, testing and public fire services, with narrow exceptions | 10 April 2026 |
| 1(a) | Clothing and related accessories for the general public, made of textiles, leather, furs or hides | 10 October 2026 |
| 1(b) | Footwear for the general public | 10 October 2026 |
| 1(c) | Paper and cardboard food contact materials within Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004 | 10 October 2026 |
| 1(d) | Mixtures for the general public | 10 October 2026 |
| 1(e) | Cosmetic products as defined in Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 | 10 October 2026 |
| 2 | Other textiles, leather, furs and hides for the general public | 10 October 2027 |
| 5 | Firefighting foams and concentrates for civil aviation, including civilian airports | 10 October 2029 |
Dates are from Regulation 2024/2462 and ECHA entry 79. Clothing and accessories are caught now; other consumer textiles, such as home textiles, follow on 10 October 2027.
The foam exceptions are narrow. Functional testing of firefighting systems is outside the April date only where all releases are contained. Public fire services are outside that date for intervention at industrial fires at Seveso III sites (Directive 2012/18/EU), if the foam and the equipment are used only for that purpose (entry 79, paragraph 4).
PFHxA restriction for cosmetics and food contact paper
Point 1(e) covers cosmetic products as defined in Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009. Unlike points (a), (b) and (d), it does not carry the "for the general public" wording (entry 79).
Entry 79 covers paper and cardboard food contact materials only. Food contact packaging of any material also falls under Article 5(5) of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (EU) 2025/40. Article 5(5) has applied since 12 August 2026. It sets 25 ppb for any single PFAS, 250 ppb for the sum of PFAS (both by targeted analysis, polymeric PFAS excluded) and 50 ppm for PFAS including polymers. Paper and board food packaging has to meet both rules. Passing one does not prove the other.
Exemptions and stock already on the market
Paragraphs 1 and 2 don't apply to these products (Regulation 2024/2462):
- PPE protecting against the category III risks in points (a), (c)-(f), (h) and (l) of Annex I to Regulation (EU) 2016/425, not every category III PPE product
- medical devices under Regulation (EU) 2017/745 and in vitro diagnostic devices under Regulation (EU) 2017/746
- construction textiles
Substances with a C6F13- group attached to a sulphur atom, already prohibited under Annex I of the POPs Regulation (EU) 2019/1021, are excluded from paragraphs 1, 2, 4 and 5 (entry 79, paragraph 6).
Articles and mixtures placed on the market before 10 October 2026 are exempt from paragraph 1. Paragraph 2 articles are exempt if they were placed on the market before 10 October 2027. Placed on the market means supplied, not merely manufactured. Recital 25 puts the proof on the supplier. Firefighting foams have no stock exemption (paragraphs 7 and 8, and recital 25).
How it fits with other EU PFAS rules
- Entry 68 (Regulation (EU) 2021/1297) has restricted C9-C14 PFCAs since 25 February 2023: 25 ppb for the sum of the acids and their salts, and 260 ppb for the sum of related substances.
- PFOA is regulated under the POPs Regulation, listed by Regulation (EU) 2020/784, not under REACH.
- Entry 82 (Regulation (EU) 2025/1988) restricts PFAS in firefighting foams at or above 1 mg/L from 23 October 2030, with earlier and later dates for some uses. PFHxA foam uses already restricted under entry 79 are excluded from that ban, but PFHxA still counts in entry 82's sum. Entry 82 does not postpone the entry 79 dates.
- The universal PFAS restriction is still with ECHA (registry). RAC adopted its final opinion on 2 March 2026. SEAC agreed its draft opinion on 10 March 2026. SEAC's final opinion is expected by the end of 2026.
Regulation 2024/2462 says PFHxA uses outside entry 79 fall within that broader proposal. The proposal is not adopted, and it has no application date. RegAffairs AI answers what the PFHxA restriction covers and when it applies.