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2008 Fact Sheet on "not chemically modified"

REACH includes an exemption from registration for naturally occurring substances (minerals, ores, ore concentrates, raw and processed natural gas, crude oil, coal) provided they are « not chemically modified » (as defined in Article 3(40)).

The ECHA Guidance for Annex V Exemptions from the obligation to register (2012, https://echa.europa.eu/documents/10162/2324906/annex_v_en.pdf/8db56598-f7b7-41ba-91df-c55f9f626545) specifies that the following:

Minerals which occur in nature are covered by the exemption if they are not chemically modified. This applies to naturally occurring minerals, which have undergone a chemical process or treatment, or a physical mineralogical transformation, for instance to remove impurities, provided that none of the constituents of the final isolated substance has been chemically modified.
Ores and concentrates : The ores themselves can be regarded as substances which occur in nature and which therefore are exempted from the obligation to register. It should be noted however, that when ores are extracted with methods not mentioned in the definition of ‘substances which occur in nature’, or with methods which modify the chemical structure of the final substance, the final ‘product’ of the treatment can normally not be regarded as a substance which occurs in nature and hence will need to be registered. However, ores are exempted when processed only by means mentioned in Article 3(39) subsequently undergo a chemical process or treatment, or a physical mineralogical transformation, for instance to remove impurities, provided that none of the constituents of the final isolated substance has been chemically modified.
At the time of the EIF or REACH and the first registration deadline, this ECHA Guidance document was not available. Hence Eurometaux and its members had prepared a fact sheet aiming at clarifying the point at which, in the metal supply chain, naturally occurring substances have become chemically modified and the exemption in Annex V.7 of REACH no longer applies

Last page update: 3 January 2023