What is the difference between REACH and RoHS?

REACH governs chemicals in all articles sold in the EU, focusing on Substances of Very High Concern (SVHCs) on the Candidate List. RoHS restricts ten specific hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment. A product can be subject to both at once.

What is the 0.1% SVHC threshold?

Under REACH, if an article contains a Candidate List SVHC above 0.1% weight by weight, the supplier must communicate safe-use information down the supply chain and, since 2021, submit a SCIP notification to the ECHA database.

What are the RoHS substance limits?

RoHS restricts lead, mercury, hexavalent chromium, PBB and PBDE flame retardants, and four phthalates (DEHP, BBP, DBP, DIBP) to 0.1% by weight in homogeneous materials, and cadmium to 0.01%, unless an exemption applies.

What is a SCIP notification?

SCIP is the ECHA database of Substances of Concern In articles as such or in complex objects (Products). Companies placing articles containing SVHCs above 0.1% on the EU market must notify ECHA so waste operators and consumers can access the data.

Is my product data sent anywhere?

No. The checker uses a built-in mapping of materials to common substance concerns and runs entirely in your browser. No material or product detail is transmitted or stored.

REACH / RoHS Substance Checker

REACH and RoHS are the two pillars of EU chemical compliance for physical products. REACH restricts hazardous chemicals in all articles, with a special focus on Substances of Very High Concern (SVHCs); RoHS restricts ten named substances specifically in electrical and electronic equipment. This free checker maps your material types to the likely substance concerns and tells you which communication, notification and limit obligations apply. It is built for product, sourcing and compliance teams.

How it works

Under REACH, the Candidate List of SVHCs grows twice a year. If an article contains any listed SVHC above 0.1% w/w, two duties trigger: communicate safe-use information to recipients (and to consumers on request within 45 days), and submit a SCIP notification to ECHA. The checker flags materials that commonly carry SVHCs — for example PVC and flexible plastics for phthalates, solders and brass for lead, and treated textiles for certain perfluorinated compounds.

Under RoHS (2011/65/EU), if the product is electrical or electronic equipment, ten substances are capped in each homogeneous material: lead, mercury, hexavalent chromium, PBB and PBDE flame retardants, and the phthalates DEHP, BBP, DBP and DIBP are limited to 0.1%, while cadmium is limited to 0.01%. The tool applies these limits only when you mark the product as electrical, and reminds you that category-specific exemptions (e.g. lead in certain solders) may exist.

Notes and example

A PVC-jacketed power cable on a consumer electronics product is in scope for both regimes: REACH phthalate SVHC communication plus a SCIP notification if above 0.1%, and the RoHS phthalate and lead limits because it is electrical equipment. A solid stainless-steel kitchen utensil is a REACH article only, with low SVHC risk and no RoHS scope.

This checker uses generalised material-to-substance mappings; it cannot confirm actual concentrations, which require a supplier declaration or laboratory testing. Always obtain a full materials declaration. Everything is computed locally.