European Union cosmetic ingredient regulations
EU Cosmetics Regulation 1223/2009 annexes and the CosIng discovery database.
- Regulator
- European Commission
- Source language
- English and EU languages
- Coverage version
- Regulation (EC) 1223/2009 consolidated to 1 May 2026
What this list is
The EU list is not one list. Regulation 1223/2009 splits substances across five annexes that answer different questions, and reading the wrong one is the most common way to get an EU answer wrong.
- Annex II prohibits 1,739 substances outright.
- Annex III permits 373 substances only within stated limits, product types and warnings.
- Annexes IV, V and VI are positive lists: 154 colourants, 54 preservatives, 33 UV filters.
- For those three categories, absence from the annex means not permitted — the opposite of Annex II's logic.
- CosIng is a discovery database, not the law; the annexes as published are.
Most markets on this site publish one list. The EU publishes five, and they do not work the same way. Annex II names substances that may not be used at all. Annex III names substances that may be used, but only within a concentration limit, for stated product types, and often with a warning that must appear on the label. Annexes IV, V and VI are positive lists for colourants, preservatives and UV filters.
That last distinction reverses the logic and catches people out. For a substance in general, absence from Annex II is not permission — nothing has been decided about it. For a preservative, absence from Annex V is a decision: it may not be used as a preservative in a cosmetic product. The same silence means opposite things depending on which annex you are reading.
CosIng is worth naming separately, because it is what most searches land on. It is the Commission's database for finding ingredients and their annex references, and it is genuinely useful for that. It is not the legal text. When CosIng and the published annex disagree — usually because an amendment has come into force and the database has not caught up — the annex governs.
An Annex III entry is also more than a number. The limit, the product-type condition and the warning text travel together, and quoting the concentration without the condition it applies to produces an answer that is right about the figure and wrong about the product.
Checked against
Official ingredient records
2353 matching records3-(4'-methylbenzylidene)-camphor; [INCI: 4-Methylbenzylidene Camphor]
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1730 · 04/04/2024
diphenyl(2,4,6-trimethylbenzoyl)phosphine oxide; INCI: Trimethylbenzoyl Diphenylphosphine Oxide
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1731 · 18/06/2025
2,2',6,6'-tetrabromo-4,4'-isopropylidenediphenol; tetrabromobisphenol-A
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1732 · 18/06/2025
transfluthrin (ISO); 2,3,5,6-tetrafluorobenzyl (1R,3S)-3-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropanecarboxylate
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1733 · 18/06/2025
clothianidin (ISO); (E)-1-(2-chloro-1,3-thiazol-5-ylmethyl)-3-methyl-2-nitroguanidine
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1734 · 18/06/2025
benzyl(diethylamino)diphenylphosphonium 4-[1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)propan-2-yl]phenolate
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1735 · 18/06/2025
benzyltriphenylphosphonium, salt with 4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]bis[phenol] (1:1)
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1736 · 18/06/2025
reaction mass of 4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]diphenol and benzyl(diethylamino)diphenylphosphonium 4-[1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)propan-2-yl]phenolate (1:1)
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1737 · 18/06/2025
reaction mass of 4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]diphenol and benzyltriphenylphosphonium, salt with 4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]diphenol (1:1)
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1738 · 18/06/2025
dimethyl propylphosphonate
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1739 · 18/06/2025
Metheptazine (INN) and its salts
Source reference: Annex II, entry 174 · 20/10/2010
reaction mass of 1-(2,3-epoxypropoxy)-2,2-bis ((2,3-epoxypropoxy)methyl) butane and 1-(2,3-epoxypropoxy)-2-((2,3-epoxypropoxy)methyl)-2-hydroxymethyl butane
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1742 · 18/06/2025
4,4'-[2,2,2-trifluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)ethylidene]diphenol; bisphenol AF
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1743 · 18/06/2025
benfluralin (ISO); N-butyl-N-ethyl-α,α,α-trifluoro-2,6-dinitro-p-toluidine
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1744 · 18/06/2025
N,N-dimethyl-p-toluidine
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1745 · 21/07/2025
1,4-Benzenediamine, N,N’-mixed Ph and tolyl derivs.
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1746 · 18/06/2025
difenoconazole (ISO); 1-({2-[2-chloro-4-(4-chlorophenoxy)phenyl]-4-methyl-1,3-dioxolan-2-yl}methyl)-1H-1,2,4-triazole; 3-chloro-4-[(2RS,4RS;2RS,4SR)-4-methyl-2-(1H-1,2,4-triazol-1-ylmethyl)-1,3-dioxolan-2-yl]phenyl 4-chlorophenyl ether
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1748 · 18/06/2025
Methylphenidate (INN) and its salts
Source reference: Annex II, entry 175 · 20/10/2010
3,3'-dimethylbiphenyl-4,4'-diyl diisocyanate
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1750 · 18/06/2025
foramsulfuron (ISO); 2-{[(4,6-dimethoxypyrimidin-2-yl)carbamoyl]sulfamoyl}-4-formamido-N,N-dimethylbenzamide; 1-(4,6-dimethoxypyrimidin-2-yl)-3-(2-dimethylcarbamoyl-5-formamidophenylsulfonyl)urea
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1751 · 18/06/2025
Multi-walled Carbon Tubes (synthetic graphite in tubular shape) with a geometric tube diameter range ≥ 30 nm to < 3 μm and a length ≥ 5 μm and aspect ratio > 3:1, including Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes, MWC(N)T
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1752 · 15/01/2026
reaction mass of 1,3-dioxan-5-ol and 1,3-dioxolan-4-ylmethanol
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1753 · 15/01/2026
2-(dimethylamino)-2-[(4-methylphenyl)methyl]-1-[4-(morpholin-4-yl)phenyl]butan-1-one
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1755 · 15/01/2026
2,3-epoxypropyl neodecanoate
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1756 · 15/01/2026
Benthiavalicarb-isopropyl (ISO); isopropyl [(S)-1-{[(R)-1-(6-fluoro-1,3-benzothiazol-2-yl)ethyl]carbamoyl}-2-methylpropyl]carbamate
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1757 · 15/01/2026
7-oxabicyclo[4.1.0]hept-3-ylmethyl 7-oxabicyclo[4.1.0]heptane-3-carboxylate
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1758 · 15/01/2026
Sodium 3-(allyloxy)-2-hydroxypropanesulphonate
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1759 · 15/01/2026
Doxylamine (INN) and its salts
Source reference: Annex II, entry 176 · 20/10/2010
1,4-dichloro-2-nitrobenzene
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1760 · 15/01/2026
Fenpropidin (ISO); (R,S)-1-[3-(4-tert-butylphenyl)-2-methylpropyl]piperidine
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1761 · 15/01/2026
N,N’-methylenediacrylamide
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1762 · 15/01/2026
tert-butyl 2-ethylperoxyhexanoate
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1763 · 15/01/2026
S-metolachlor (ISO); 2-chloro-N-(2-ethyl-6-methylphenyl)-N-[(2S)-1-methoxypropan-2-yl]acetamide; (R a S a)-2-chloro-N-(6-ethyl-o-tolyl)-N-[(1S)-2-methoxy-1-methylethyl]acetamide [contains 80-100 % 2-chloro-N-(2-ethyl-6-methylphenyl)-N-[(2S)-1-methoxypropan-2-yl]acetamide and 0-20 % 2-chloro-N-(2-ethyl-6-methylphenyl)-N-[(2R)-1-methoxypropan-2-yl]acetamide]
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1765 · 15/01/2026
Pyraclostrobin (ISO); methyl N-(2-{[1-(4-chlorophenyl)-1H-pyrazol-3-yl]oxymethyl}phenyl) N-methoxy carbamate
Source reference: Annex II, entry 1766 · 15/01/2026
4-Benzyloxyphenol and 4-ethoxyphenol
Source reference: Annex II, entry 178 · 20/10/2010
Parethoxycaine (INN) and its salts
Source reference: Annex II, entry 179 · 20/10/2010
Glutethimide (INN) and its salts
Source reference: Annex II, entry 181 · 20/10/2010
Bemegride (INN) and its salts
Source reference: Annex II, entry 183 · 20/10/2010
Market coverage contract
Complete annex dataset- Included scope
- Annexes II–VI: prohibited and restricted substances, colourants, preservatives and UV filters.
- If no match is found
- No annex match only means that these five annexes did not return a match; CosIng identity data and other EU obligations still need review.
Complete verification checklist
- Confirm the exact INCI/CAS/EC identity.
- Review every matching Annex II–VI row and its conditions.
- Check SCCS opinions, CMR/nanomaterial rules and later amendments.
- Verify product classification, claims, labelling and responsible-person duties.
How European Union differs from other markets
Comparing this market's imported rules against every other market's for the same substance. A market with no imported rule for a substance is left out of that comparison rather than treated as permitting it.
A formula cleared elsewhere can fail here.
and 22 more — see the full comparison
Permitted here under conditions and prohibited, or more tightly held, elsewhere — so a formula built for this market may not travel.
and 103 more — see the full comparison
Official sources and legal role
PubChem PUG-View annotations
Attributed physical-property, hazard, environmental, use and literature annotations for uniquely matched PubChem compounds
Legal meaning: Scientific context aggregated by PubChem; individual values retain their named depositor or publication source
EMBL-EBI ChEBI 2.0
Curated definitions, chemical classes, roles, names, relationships and cross-references
Legal meaning: Curated scientific ontology; not a cosmetics permission or prohibition list
FDA Global Substance Registration System
UNII identifiers, preferred names, substance types, codes and public substance relationships
Legal meaning: Identity registry only; UNII availability does not imply FDA review or approval
Cosmetic Ingredient Review safety assessments
Expert Panel conclusions, assessed ingredient groups, use conditions, dates and report documents
Legal meaning: Independent expert review considered by FDA; not a government approval or binding market rule
EU Safety Gate cosmetic product alerts
Published cosmetic product alerts, notifying country, risk, product identifiers and corrective measures
Legal meaning: Official market-surveillance alerts; not proof that a named ingredient caused an incident
Available language: English and EU languages
What this market page can answer
Source and authority
Identify the official material and the regulator responsible for it: European Commission.
Language and scope
See whether usable English or bilingual material exists and what the mapped source actually covers. Current source language: English and EU languages.
Evidence status
Browse ingredient-level records imported from official sources. Each row states whether it passed deterministic source checks or human editorial review.
How to verify an ingredient for this market
- Search the ingredient by INCI name, CAS number or EC number and record the exact identity.
- Open each official source above and check the current version, product scope, concentration limits and required warnings.
- Confirm effective dates and whether an English text is official, reviewed or only contextual.
- Treat a missing local match as unknown, never as permission or a safety conclusion.