UK REACH fees to receive major overhaul from April 2025
March 12, 2025
The UK Government has just passed new legislation amending the fees charged under the UK REACH Regulation, which will come into effect on April 1, 2025. Despite the explanatory note to the amending regulations stating that “no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sectors is foreseen”, the changes introduced are indeed substantial so industry should take note.
Key changes to fee arrangements
Flat rate for all registrations: All UK registrations will now incur a flat fee of £2,222, regardless of the tonnage band. This represents a significant increase for 1-10 tonnes per annum (tpa) registrations and for intermediate registrations, which will rise by 95% from the current fee of £1,138 (for joint submissions). Conversely, higher tonnage registrations will see a substantial decrease in costs, as much as a 90% reduction for the 1,000+ tpa tonnage band.
The uniform fee for registrations also means there will be no difference in fees for registrations made individually (lead registrations) or jointly (co-registrations), but the discount arrangements for small and medium sized enterprises (SME) will remain in place.
Upgrading registrations: The flat rate policy also applies to registration upgrades. These will also be charged a flat rate of £2,222, regardless of the extent to which the tonnage band has increased. Again, there will be winners and losers, with lower tonnage updates becoming more expensive and higher tonnage updates becoming cheaper. SME discounts will continue to apply, albeit at these updated rates.
PPORDs: The fee for product and process oriented research and development (PPORD) notifications will also increase, from £475 to £751 per notification.
Authorisation applications: Authorisation application fees will rise by over £10,000, from £47,229 to £57,689, a price increase also extends to submission of review reports.
Justification and impact
The explanatory note accompanying the legislation justifies these amendments by referencing the all-items consumer prices index published by the Statistics Board and the costs of the Agency (HSE) in administering UK REACH. Unusually, no impact assessment has been produced, because ‘no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sectors is foreseen’.
Despite this assertion, the changes will be important for industry and businesses will need to adjust their budgets accordingly. Those businesses dealing with lower tonnage registrations and intermediate registrations will face increased costs. On the other hand, companies handling higher tonnage registrations will undoubtedly benefit from reduced fees.
We recommend businesses review these changes carefully. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us at [email protected].
