On June 30, 2026, South Korea's Ministry of Employment and Labor (MoEL) published the names, hazards, and risks of 74 new chemical substances manufactured or imported in South Korea in the second quarter of 2026, along with the workplace measures to be taken to prevent health damage to workers. It also issued requirements to relevant manufacturing and importing enterprises to prevent damage to workers' health, including the use of personal protective equipment and the installation of local exhaust ventilation.
Under Article 108 of South Korea's Occupational Safety and Health Act (KOSHA Act), manufacturers or importers of new chemical substances must submit a hazard and risk investigation report to the MoEL 30 days before the date of manufacture or import. Of the 74 new chemical substances published this time, 43 substances, including 1,4-Dioxan-2-one and 1,2-Disilylethane, were confirmed to present hazards and risks such as acute toxicity, skin corrosion, serious eye damage, flammable solids, and substances and mixtures which in contact with water, emit flammable gases. The hazard determinations are based on South Korea's GHS classification criteria, made on the basis of toxicity data submitted by the notifying enterprises.
The MoEL has notified the relevant enterprises of the necessary compliance measures. Employers must, based on the hazard and risk information published this time, establish or update their workplace chemical management systems; conduct safety and health training tailored to the characteristics of the chemicals handled; provide personal protective equipment such as respiratory protective equipment, protective gloves and safety goggles; and install local exhaust ventilation in areas generating hazardous dust, mist and vapor. The MoEL's local offices will carry out supervisory inspections of the implementation of these worker protection measures.
ChemRadar Insights
More than half (43) of the 74 new chemical substances published this time present clear health hazards; enterprises exporting chemicals to South Korea must incorporate KOSHA new substance notification and workplace occupational protection into their compliance priorities. Relevant enterprises are advised to:
1. Check the list promptly: Verify against the list of 74 new chemical substances attached to MoEL Announcement No. 2026-337 whether products they manufacture or import in South Korea are included, with particular attention to the classification information of the 43 hazardous substances.
2. Fulfill advance notification obligations: Enterprises intending to manufacture or import new chemical substances in South Korea must submit a hazard and risk investigation report to the MoEL 30 days before the date of manufacture or import; overseas enterprises should engage a Korean Only Representative (OR) in advance to handle the process.
3. Implement occupational protection: For the 43 hazardous substances, improve SDS and labels according to GHS classification, and support these with worker training, issuance of personal protective equipment, and engineering controls such as local exhaust ventilation, in order to respond to supervisory inspections by local labor authorities.
4. Establish a chemical management system: Incorporate these assessment results into the enterprise's full life-cycle chemical management, and continuously track the quarterly assessment updates published by the MoEL.
