United Kingdom – New amendment: Hexyl Salicylate and some Annex II additions

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Information Letter 159

March 17, 2026

Hexyl Salicylate Added to Annex III — and More Key UKCR Updates

Following up on our Information Letter 156, the new UK Statutory Instrument (SI 2026/109) has been published on February 9th, 2026.

Compared to the original draft, the final text includes a notable modification: Nail products (intended for children above 3 years of age and adults) may contain up to 0.5% of Hexyl Salicylate vs the 0.3% initially proposed.

This also differs from the EU restriction following the Omnibus VIII Regulation.

Please refer to the annex below for the details about the substances concerned and their respective restrictions.

The application deadlines have not changed.

As a reminder:

For Hexyl Salicylate: Non-compliant products cannot be placed on the UK market from August 15^th, 2026, and must be withdrawn from the UK market on February 14^th, 2027, at latest.
Annex II additions (banned ingredients): Products containing these substances cannot be placed on the UK market from March 23^rd, 2027, and must be withdrawn from the UK market on September 22^nd, 2027, at latest.

ANNEX

Amendment of Annex III – allowed substances under certain conditions:

Hexyl Salicylate (CAS No 6259-76-3):

Product category	Limit
(a) Fragrance products (spray and non-spray)	(a) (1) 0.1% (Products intended for children 0-3 years) (a) (2) 2% (Products intended for children above 3 years and adults)
(b) Rinse-off skin and hair products	(b) (1) 0.1% (Products intended for children 0-3 years) (b) (2) 0.5% (Products intended for children above 3 years and adults)
(c) Leave-on skin products (except fragrance products, face makeup products, lip products and deodorants (spray and non-spray))	(c) (1) 0.1% (Products intended for children 0-3 years) (c) (2) 0.3% (Products intended for children above 3 years and adults)
(d) Lip products	(d) (1) 0.1% (Products intended for children 0-3 years) (d) (2) 0.3% (Products intended for children above 3 years and adults)
(e) Deodorant (spray and non-spray)	(e) 0.3% (Products intended for children above 3 years and adults)
(f) Leave-on hair products (spray and non-spray)	(f) 0.3% (Products intended for children above 3 years and adults)
(g) Face makeup products	(g) 0.3% (Products intended for children above 3 years and adults)
(h) Toothpaste and mouthwash	(h) 0.001%
(i) Nail products	(i) 0.5% (Products intended for children above 3 years and adults)

Addition to Annex II – forbidden substances:

Entry #	Substance	CAS Number
1761	Sodium 3-(allyloxy)-2-hydroxypropanesulphonate	52556-42-0
1762	N,N’-methylenediacrylamide	110-26-9
1763	Reaction mass of 1,3-dioxan-5-ol and 1,3-dioxolan-4-ylmethanol
1764	1,4-dichloro-2-nitrobenzene	89-61-2
1765	Pyraclostrobin (ISO); methyl N-{]2-[}1-(4-chlorophenyl)-1H-pyrazol-3-yloxymethyl{]phenyl[} (N-methoxy)carbamate	175013-18-0
1766	Tert-butyl 2-ethylperoxyhexanoate	3006-82-4
1767	Fenpropidin (ISO); (R,S)-1-[3-(4-tertbutylphenyl)-2-methylpropyl]piperidine	67306-00-7
1768	2-ethylhexanoic acid, monoester with propane-1,2-diol	85114-00-7
1769	α,α’-propylenedinitrilodi-o-cresol	94-91-7
1770	Ozone	10028-15-6
1771	2-phenylpropene; α-methylstyrene	98-83-9
1772	Silver (nano) [particle diameter > 1 nm ≤ 100 nm] Silver (massive) [particle diameter ≥ 1 mm]	7440-22-4
1773	Dinitrogen oxide	10024-97-2

Author

Christophe Brault-Chevalier

Christophe Brault-Chevalier is the Scientific & Regulatory Affairs Director at Biorius, bringing over 20 years of experience in the cosmetics industry. He has previously held positions at International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (IFF) and LVMH, further enhancing his expertise in the field.

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