The European Parliament and the Council have reached a provisional agreement on the ‘one substance, one assessment’ (OSOA) package – an important milestone under the EU Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability. The initiative seeks to simplify and harmonise the way chemical hazards and risks are assessed across the EU, ensuring quicker and more coherent protection of public health and the environment.

At its core, the OSOA package introduces a common data platform, improves collaboration among EU agencies, and reallocates technical tasks to the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). The reforms will enable faster decision-making and reduce duplication of efforts across regulatory frameworks for products such as food, toys, pesticides, medical devices, and biocides.

The streamlined process benefits citizens, industry, and authorities alike by improving access to chemical safety data, enhancing predictability, and supporting smarter regulation. A monitoring and outlook framework will also be established to detect emerging chemical risks earlier.

The new measures are part of the Commission’s broader simplification agenda. Once formally adopted, the legislation will enter into force 20 days after publication in the Official Journal of the EU.