,On January 15, 2026, the UK Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) published a Statutory Instrument amending several Annexes of the UK Cosmetics Regulation (UKCR) to strengthen chemical restrictions and labelling requirements in cosmetic products sold in Great Britain. Under the updated Annex II (prohibited substances), the UV filter 4-methylbenzylidene camphor (4-MBC) is added to the banned list, meaning it is no longer permitted in cosmetic formulations; the deadline for placing products on the market is 15 July 2026, with an off-shelf (making available) deadline of 14 January 2027. OPSS also included a list of 16 carcinogenic, mutagenic, or toxic for reproduction (CMR) substances in Annex II one of which, trimethylbenzoyl diphenylphosphine oxide (TPO), has an INCI name and is used in cosmetics with deadlines of 15 August 2026 to place products on the market and 14 February 2027 off-shelf. The preamble to Annex V (permitted preservatives) was amended to require a releases formaldehyde warning label on finished products where formaldehyde release exceeds 0.001 %. These revisions aim to enhance consumer safety and regulatory clarity for cosmetics in the UK market.
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