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Great Britain cosmetic ingredient regulations

GB rules must be versioned separately from EU rules as they diverge.

Regulator
Office for Product Safety and Standards
Source language
English
Coverage version
GB retained Regulation 1223/2009 schedules, effective 15 August 2026

What this list is

Great Britain carried EU Regulation 1223/2009 onto its own statute book after Brexit and has amended it separately ever since. The two lists started identical and no longer are, which is why a GB check cannot be answered from an EU one.

  • 2,329 GB records: 1,758 prohibited, 326 restricted, 245 on a positive list.
  • The regulator is the Office for Product Safety and Standards, not the European Commission.
  • GB and EU annexes are amended by different bodies on different dates, so they drift apart substance by substance.
  • A substance absent from the GB list is not thereby permitted — absence is absence of a record, not a decision.

The Cosmetic Products Enforcement Regulations 2013 kept Regulation 1223/2009 in force in Great Britain after EU exit, so the structure a formulator already knows — Annex II for prohibited substances, Annex III for restricted ones, Annexes IV to VI for colourants, preservatives and UV filters — is the same here. What changed is who amends it. The Office for Product Safety and Standards now does that for Great Britain, and the European Commission does it for the EU, on their own timetables.

That divergence is the practical point of this page. When the Commission adds a substance to Annex II, Great Britain does not follow automatically. The reverse holds too. Two lists that began as one copy now differ entry by entry, and the gap widens with each amendment cycle, so a compliance answer for one market is not evidence for the other even when the substance and the wording look identical.

Northern Ireland is not covered here. Under the Windsor Framework it continues to apply the EU regulation, so a product placed on the market across the whole United Kingdom is answering to two rulebooks at once. Check the EU records for that half.

The 2,329 records below carry the status the GB source gives them and nothing more. Where a record is marked restricted, the concentration limit, product-type condition and warning text come from the source as written; where a substance has no record at all, that means no GB entry was resolved here, not that its use has been considered and allowed.

Checked against

Official ingredient records

2329 matching records
Permitted list with conditionsBinding ruleOriginal is EnglishOfficial-source import checked

Silver

CAS 7440-22-4 · EC 231-131-3

The consolidated GB Cosmetics Regulation lists this record in Annex IV.

Conditions: Purity criteria as set out in Commission Directive 95/45/EC (E 174)

Source:GB Cosmetics Regulation, Annex IV, entry 142 · version 2026-08-15 · effective Aug. 15, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

View full recordIngredient profile
Permitted list with conditionsBinding ruleOriginal is EnglishOfficial-source import checked

Silver chloride

CAS 7783-90-6 · EC 232-033-3

The consolidated GB Cosmetics Regulation lists this record in Annex V.

Conditions: 0,004% (as AgCl) · 20% AgCl (w/w) on TiO2. Not to be used in products for children under 3 years of age, in oral products and in eye and lip products

Source:GB Cosmetics Regulation, Annex V, entry 52 · version 2026-08-15 · effective Aug. 15, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

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RestrictedBinding ruleOriginal is EnglishOfficial-source import checked

Silver nitrate

CAS 7761-88-8 · EC 231-853-9

The consolidated GB Cosmetics Regulation lists this record in Annex III.

Conditions: Only for colouring eyelashes and eyebrows · 4% · Contains silver nitrate Rinse eyes immediately if product comes into contact with them

Source:GB Cosmetics Regulation, Annex III, entry 48 · version 2026-08-15 · effective Aug. 15, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

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ProhibitedBinding ruleOriginal is EnglishOfficial-source import checked

Slack wax (petroleum), low-melting, silicic acid-treated, except if the full refining history is known and it can be shown that the substance from which it is produced is not a carcinogen

CAS 97863-06-4 · EC 308-158-5

The consolidated GB Cosmetics Regulation lists this record in Annex II.

Source:GB Cosmetics Regulation, Annex II, entry 902 · version 2026-08-15 · effective Aug. 15, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

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RestrictedBinding ruleOriginal is EnglishOfficial-source import checked

Sodium Fluoride

CAS 7681-49-4 · EC 231-667-8

The consolidated GB Cosmetics Regulation lists this record in Annex III.

Conditions: Oral products · 0,15% calculated as F. When mixed with other fluorine compounds permitted under this Annex, total F concentration must not exceed 0,15% · Contains sodium fluoride. For any toothpaste with compounds containing fluorine in a concentration of 0,1 to 0,15% calculated as F unless it is already labelled as contra-indicated for children (e.g. ‘ for adult use only ’ ) the following labelling is obligatory: Children of 6 years and younger: use a pea-sized amount for supervised brushing to minimise swallowing. In case of intake of fluoride from other sources consult a dentist or doctor.

Source:GB Cosmetics Regulation, Annex III, entry 31 · version 2026-08-15 · effective Aug. 15, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

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RestrictedBinding ruleOriginal is EnglishOfficial-source import checked

Sodium Fluorosilicate

CAS 16893-85-9 · EC 240-934-8

The consolidated GB Cosmetics Regulation lists this record in Annex III.

Conditions: Oral products · 0,15% calculated as F. When mixed with other fluorine compounds permitted under this Annex, total F concentration must not exceed 0,15% · Contains sodium fluorosilicate. For any toothpaste with compounds containing fluorine in a concentration of 0,1 to 0,15% calculated as F unless it is already labelled as contra-indicated for children (e.g. ‘ for adult use only ’ ) the following labelling is obligatory: Children of 6 years and younger: use a pea-sized amount for supervised brushing to minimise swallowing. In case of intake of fluoride from other sources consult a dentist or doctor.

Source:GB Cosmetics Regulation, Annex III, entry 40 · version 2026-08-15 · effective Aug. 15, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

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Permitted list with conditionsBinding ruleOriginal is EnglishOfficial-source import checked

Sodium Hydroxymethylglycinate

CAS 70161-44-3 · EC 274-357-8

The consolidated GB Cosmetics Regulation lists this record in Annex V.

Conditions: 0,5% · Not to be used if the maximum theoretical concentration of releasable formaldehyde, irrespective of the source, in the mixture as placed on the market is ≥ 0,1% w/w

Source:GB Cosmetics Regulation, Annex V, entry 51 · version 2026-08-15 · effective Aug. 15, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

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RestrictedBinding ruleOriginal is EnglishOfficial-source import checked

Sodium Monofluorophosphate

CAS 10163-15-2; 7631-97-2 · EC 233-433-0; 231-552-2

The consolidated GB Cosmetics Regulation lists this record in Annex III.

Conditions: Oral products · 0,15% calculated as F. When mixed with other fluorine compounds permitted under this Annex, total F concentration must not exceed 0,15% · Contains sodium monofluorophosphate. For any toothpaste with compounds containing fluorine in a concentration of 0,1 to 0,15% calculated as F unless it is already labelled as contra-indicated for children (e.g. ‘ for adult use only ’ ) the following labelling is obligatory: Children of 6 years and younger: use a pea-sized amount for supervised brushing to minimise swallowing. In case of intake of fluoride from other sources consult a dentist or doctor.

Source:GB Cosmetics Regulation, Annex III, entry 27 · version 2026-08-15 · effective Aug. 15, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

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RestrictedBinding ruleOriginal is EnglishOfficial-source import checked

Sodium nitrite

CAS 7632-00-0 · EC 231-555-9

The consolidated GB Cosmetics Regulation lists this record in Annex III.

Conditions: Rust inhibitor · 0,2% · Not to be used with secondary and/or tertiary amines or other substances forming nitrosamines

Source:GB Cosmetics Regulation, Annex III, entry 17 · version 2026-08-15 · effective Aug. 15, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

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Permitted list with conditionsBinding ruleOriginal is EnglishOfficial-source import checked

Sodium sulfite, ammonium bisulfite, ammonium sulfite, potassium sulfite, potassium hydrogen sulfite, sodium bisulfite, sodium metabisulfite, potassium metabisulfite

CAS 7757-83-7; 10192-30-0; 10196-04-0; 10117-38-1; 7773-03-7; 7631-90-5; 7681-57-4; 16731-55-8 · EC 231-821-4; 233-469-7; 233-484-9; 233-321-1; 231-870-1; 231-548-0; 231-673-0; 240-795-3

The consolidated GB Cosmetics Regulation lists this record in Annex V.

Conditions: 0,2% (as free SO2)

Source:GB Cosmetics Regulation, Annex V, entry 9 · version 2026-08-15 · effective Aug. 15, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

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Permitted list with conditionsBinding ruleOriginal is EnglishOfficial-source import checked

Sorbic acid, calcium sorbate, sodium sorbate, potassium sorbate

CAS 110-44-1; 7492-55-9; 7757-81-5; 24634-61-5 · EC 203-768-7; 231-321-6; 231-819-3; 246-376-1

The consolidated GB Cosmetics Regulation lists this record in Annex V.

Conditions: 0,6% (acid)

Source:GB Cosmetics Regulation, Annex V, entry 4 · version 2026-08-15 · effective Aug. 15, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

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Market coverage contract

Complete consolidated annex dataset
Included scope
Current consolidated Annexes II–VI for England, Scotland and Wales.
If no match is found
No annex match is not approval and does not cover Northern Ireland, which follows the applicable EU framework.

Complete verification checklist

  1. Confirm INCI/CAS/EC identity.
  2. Review every current GB Annex II–VI match.
  3. Check commencement dates and later statutory instruments.
  4. Verify SCPN, responsible-person, safety-report and labelling duties.

How Great Britain 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.

25 substances where Great Britain is stricter than some markets

A formula cleared elsewhere can fail here.

Diethylene GlycolPhenolCatalaseDichloromethaneDihydrocoumarinOxyquinolineThiramZirconium PowderButaneChloropheneFormaldehydeHydroquinoneIsobutaneQUATERNIUM-15Butylphenyl MethylpropionalCholecalciferolMethylene GlycolSilver NitrateZinc PyrithioneEthylhexyl EthylhexanoateTagetes Erecta Flower ExtractTrimethylbenzoyl Diphenylphosphine Oxide4-METHYLBENZYLIDENE CamphorAmmonium Silver Zinc Aluminum SilicateBenzophenone
138 substances where Great Britain is more permissive than some markets

Permitted here under conditions and prohibited, or more tightly held, elsewhere — so a formula built for this market may not travel.

Methyl Alcohol1-NAPHTHOLBenzoyl PeroxideChloramine THydrogen PeroxideP-HYDROXYANISOLE1,5-NAPHTHALENEDIOL2,7-NAPHTHALENEDIOL2-AMINO-6-CHLORO-4-NITROPHENOL2-METHYLRESORCINOL3-NITRO-P-HYDROXYETHYLAMINOPHENOL4-AMINO-2-HYDROXYTOLUENE4-AMINO-3-NITROPHENOL4-AMINO-M-CRESOLButoxyethanolDichloropheneM-AMINOPHENOLMethyl EugenolNitromethaneP-PHENYLENEDIAMINEPhenyl Methyl PyrazoloneSilver NitrateTalcTOLUENE-2,5-DIAMINE1,3-BIS-(2,4-DIAMINOPHENOXY)PROPANE1-HYDROXYETHYL 4,5-DIAMINO Pyrazole Sulfate2,6-DIAMINOPYRIDINE2,6-DIHYDROXY-3,4-DIMETHYLPYRIDINE2,6-DIHYDROXYETHYLAMINOTOLUENE2-AMINO-3-HYDROXYPYRIDINE2-AMINO-4-HYDROXYETHYLAMINOANISOLE2-CHLORO-6-ETHYLAMINO-4-NITROPHENOL2-HYDROXYETHYL Picramic Acid2-HYDROXYETHYLAMINO-5-NITROANISOLE2-METHYL-5-HYDROXYETHYLAMINOPHENOL3-AMINO-2,4-DICHLOROPHENOL3-METHYLAMINO-4-NITROPHENOXYETHANOL4-HYDROXYPROPYLAMINO-3-NITROPHENOL4-NITRO-O-PHENYLENEDIAMINE4-NITROPHENYL Aminoethylurea

and 98 more — see the full comparison

Official sources and legal role

Great Britain Cosmetics Regulation — consolidated Annexes II–VI and amendments

Complete consolidated GB Annexes II–VI, with later amendments versioned separately

Legal meaning: Binding GB schedules and versioned amendments to retained Regulation 1223/2009; applies to England, Wales and Scotland, not Northern Ireland

Available language: English

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

What this market page can answer

Source and authority

Identify the official material and the regulator responsible for it: Office for Product Safety and Standards.

Language and scope

See whether usable English or bilingual material exists and what the mapped source actually covers. Current source language: English.

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

  1. Search the ingredient by INCI name, CAS number or EC number and record the exact identity.
  2. Open each official source above and check the current version, product scope, concentration limits and required warnings.
  3. Confirm effective dates and whether an English text is official, reviewed or only contextual.
  4. Treat a missing local match as unknown, never as permission or a safety conclusion.
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