SVHC List Last Updated
When was the SVHC list last updated?
The EU REACH Candidate List of SVHCs was last updated on 4 February 2026, by ECHA Executive Director decision D(2025)7771-DC [1]. That is the latest inclusion date in the ECHA data I hold, which runs to October 2026.
What that update added: two Candidate List entries, which the decision lists as 11 substance names because the second entry is a group of a bisphenol and its salts and reaction masses:
- n-hexane (EC 203-777-6, CAS 110-54-3), listed for specific target organ toxicity after repeated exposure (Article 57(f), human health) [2].
- 4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]diphenol and its salts, the Bisphenol AF group, listed as toxic for reproduction (Article 57c) [3]. The group also has separate rows, including Bisphenol AF itself (EC 216-036-7, CAS 1478-61-1) [4] and its sodium, phosphonium and ammonium salts and reaction masses [5].
The updates before that were:
Not confirmed: ECHA has usually updated the list twice a year, in January/February and in June/July. I found no addition after 4 February 2026, but ECHA's own web pages blocked access this time, so I couldn't confirm there that nothing was added in mid-2026. ECHA's press release on the February update, "ECHA adds two hazardous chemicals to the Candidate List", gives a total of 253 entries, but I couldn't open the page, so I haven't verified that figure.
Approach: I checked the ECHA Candidate List (Article 59 REACH) and ECHA's inclusion decisions. This answer covers the EU list only, not the separate GB (UK REACH) Candidate List.
Which substances were added?
ECHA's 4 February 2026 update (decision D(2025)7771-DC) added two Candidate List entries. One is n-hexane. The other is the Bisphenol AF group, "4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]diphenol and its salts", which the list breaks down into 9 named substances. With the group heading, that makes the 11 names in the decision [1].
Entry 1: n-hexane
| Substance | EC | CAS | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| n-hexane | 203-777-6 | 110-54-3 | Specific target organ toxicity after repeated exposure (Article 57(f), human health) [2] |
Entry 2: Bisphenol AF and its salts. The group entry has no EC or CAS number of its own [3]. All 9 members are listed as toxic for reproduction (Article 57c):
| # | Substance | EC | CAS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]diphenol (Bisphenol AF) [4] | 216-036-7 | 1478-61-1 |
| 2 | Benzyltriphenylphosphonium, salt with 4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]bis[phenol] (1:1) [5] | 278-305-5 | 75768-65-9 |
| 3 | disodium 4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]diphenolate [9] | 425-060-9 | none listed |
| 4 | N,N-dibutyl-N-methylbutan-1-aminium 4-[1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)propan-2-yl]phenolate [10] | 443-330-4 | none listed |
| 5 | Phosphonium, tributyl(2-methoxypropyl)-, salt with 4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]bis[phenol] (1:1) [11] | 468-740-0 | none listed |
| 6 | Reaction products of benzene, chlorine and sulfur chloride (S2Cl2) with 4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]diphenol [12] | 469-080-6 | 921213-47-0 |
| 7 | benzyl(diethylamino)diphenylphosphonium 4-[1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)propan-2-yl]phenolate [13] | 479-100-5 | 577705-90-9 |
| 8 | Reaction mass of Bisphenol AF and benzyl(diethylamino)diphenylphosphonium 4-[1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)propan-2-yl]phenolate (1:1) [14] | none listed | none listed |
| 9 | Reaction mass of Bisphenol AF and benzyltriphenylphosphonium, salt with 4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]diphenol (1:1) [15] | none listed | none listed |
The group entry covers all of Bisphenol AF's salts. It is not limited to the 9 named members.
Approach: I checked the ECHA Candidate List and the inclusion decision for the 4 February 2026 update. No additions after that date appear in the data, which runs to October 2026.
How often does ECHA update it?
ECHA updates the Candidate List about twice a year. The decisions I hold run from 28 October 2008 to 4 February 2026: 37 inclusion decisions on 36 dates. The timing has moved over that period, and since 2024 there has sometimes been a third update in the autumn.
How the timing has changed
- 2010 to 2015: June and December. For example 18 June and 15 December 2010 [16][17], and 18 June and 19 December 2012 [18][19]. The first decision, on 28 October 2008, falls outside this pattern [20]. The next one was not until 13 January 2010 [21].
- 2017 to 2023: January and June/July. After the 20 June 2016 decision [22], the winter update moved to January, starting 12 January 2017 [23]. Recent examples are 17 January and 14 June 2023 [24][25].
- 2024 onwards: sometimes a third update in November.
Exceptions to the pattern
- 2008, 2016 and 2026 so far each have only one update. 2009 has none dated within the year: its decision (ED/68/2009) is dated 13 January 2010.
- On 15 June 2015 ECHA issued two separate decisions on the same day [29][30].
- The size of each update varies a lot, from a single substance name (June 2016, June 2022, June and November 2024, November 2025) to 78 names in December 2012 [19]. These are counts of names in the decisions, not Candidate List entries; a group entry like Bisphenol AF accounts for several names.
Approach: I went through every ECHA Executive Director decision adding substances to the EU REACH Candidate List under Article 59. These decisions do not say how often ECHA plans to update the list, so the frequency above is worked out from their dates.