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Podcast: Regulatory changes in Asia including Japan, Vietnam and China
This podcast from the Chemical Watch News & Insight team covers regulatory developments in key Asian markets.
The latest podcast covers new developments in Asia such as Vietnam’s new law on chemicals, key regulatory developments in China and what’s coming in Japan. Chemical Watch News & Insight’s Asia desk editor Dr Kerry Hebden and Asia desk senior reporter, Uzair Aftab discuss the meaning and impacts of the changes in the region.
They need to have the proper labeling following the updated GHSS standards, accurate and complete safety data sheets written in Japanese. The requirements apply not only to pure substances but to mixtures containing regulated chemicals above designated threshold limits, and there’s a grace period till March next year to apply these changes.
Dr Kerry Hebden Asia Desk Editor, Chemical Watch News & Insight.Asia’s regulatory landscape for chemicals is undergoing significant transformation, with Japan, Vietnam, and China each introducing major updates that reflect a broader shift toward stricter, more transparent, and lifecycle-based chemical management.
Japan is refining and modernizing its existing framework through phased reforms, clearer substance definitions, and digital reporting systems, while Vietnam has implemented an entirely new, risk-based law that expands oversight across the full lifecycle of chemicals and increases compliance expectations. At the same time, China is strengthening its control of hazardous chemicals and aggressively evolving its cosmetics regulations to boost global competitiveness, combining tighter safety rules with industry growth initiatives.
Together, these changes signal rising compliance demands, increased costs, and a growing need for robust regulatory expertise for companies operating in the region.
Key takeaways from the podcast:
- Changes are being implemented in a phased reform of Japan’s Chemical Substances Control Law (CSCL), with changes in October 2024, April 2026 and April 2027, including an updated interpretation of what constitutes a chemical substance.
- In Japan there’s a new e-notification platform in July 2026, that replaces multiple IDs with a single PIN login.
- Japan’s transition from the 6th version of the UN’s Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals to GHS 9 has many substances added to SDS & labeling requirements.
- A completely new chemicals law in Vietnam shifts to a modern regulatory system replacing the 2007 law.
- China’s new law on hazardous chemicals replaces the Decree 591 regulation on the safe management of hazardous chemicals.
- China aims to be a global cosmetics powerhouse with key reforms.
Listen to the latest podcast
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