REGULATION & COMPLIANCE
Due to their hazardous properties( environmental persistence, human health hazard), certain subgroups of PFAS have been listed on the Stockholm Convention, the international agreement to restrict and eliminate the use of certain persistent organic pollutants( POPs). That means that the countries that have ratified the Stockholm Convention agreed to regulate these sub-groups under their own chemical laws. The four are:
• PFOS, its salts & perfluorooctane sulfonyl fluoride( PFOSF)
• PFOA, its salts & PFOA-related compounds
• PFHxS, its salts & PFHxS-related compounds
• Long-chain perfluorocarboxylic acids( LC-PFCAs), their salts & related compounds
The later were only added to the list in 2025. As a result, few countries have begun implementing regulatory measures for them. 1 When reviewing PFAS regulations worldwide, we advise distinguishing between measures that implement the Stockholm Convention and those that go beyond its requirements with additional national restrictions.
Regional variations
The EU has implemented the Stockholm Convention through the EU POPs Regulation( EU) 2019 / 1021, which addresses all four PFAS entries.
However, the provisions for long-chain PFCAs( LC-PFCAs) are currently still in draft form. 2 In addition, several PFAS are already restricted under REACH Annex XVII, specifically under Entries 68, 79 and 82.
A broad, general PFAS restriction is currently undergoing the regulatory process and is expected to be finalised around 2027.3 Furthermore, two product-specific regulations introduced in 2025 include restrictions on PFAS: their prohibition in toys( Regulation( EU) 2025 / 2509), and the establishment of limit values in food contact materials( Regulation( EU) 2025 / 40).
The US has not ratified the Stockholm Convention, so the PFAS sub-groups listed under the Convention are not regulated at the federal level on that basis. The most significant recent federal initiative related to PFAS is the TSCA reporting rule. However, the reporting window has been postponed several times.
In November 2025, the Environmental Protection Agency( EPA) proposed narrowing the scope of the reporting requirements, for example by excluding imported articles and PFAS manufactured or imported in mixtures or products at concentrations below 0.1 %. Under a final rule published on 13 April 2026, the submission period will begin 60 days after the effective date of a forthcoming final action on the substantive requirements of the rule, or on 31 January 2027, whichever is earlier.
At the same time, there is significant regulatory activity at the state level. In 2025, several states- including New York, New Mexico and Vermont- introduced PFAS regulations addressing uses such as firefighting foam and various consumer products.
In Canada the Stockholm convention has been ratified, and the appropriate PFAS subgroups are regulated via the prohibition of certain toxic substances regulation. Last year the government published its State of PFAS Report and proposed risk management approach. To reduce environmental and human exposure a phased approach has been developed which includes addressing PFAS in firefighting foams( Phase 1), uses in consumer products( Phase 2) and evaluating sectors that are facing substitution challenges( Phase 3). 4
Most Asia-Pacific countries have ratified the Stockholm Convention, including China, Japan and New Zealand. Japan is planning to designate long-chain LC-PFCAs, their salts and related substances as Class 1 specified chemical substances under its Chemical Substances Control Law. New Zealand has prohibited PFAS in cosmetic products effective 1 January 2026.
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