On March 20, 2018, the South Korean government officially promulgated law No. 15511 (K-BPR), which will be officially put into effect on January 1, 2019, with a sub-decree to be issued in December. On September 3, 2018, the Ministry of Environment (MoE) of South Korea held a seminar to assist with the interpretation of K-BPR and to discuss implementation details. The first Biocidal Substance Information Exchange Forum (Biocidal SIEF) was officially held on September 20-21, 2018. Biocidal SIEF is a voluntary organization of manufacturers and importers in Korea which participate in the regulatory implementation. The seminar and SIEF outlined the main K-BPR concerns put forward by companies, and MoE provided valuable answers.

On 30 May 2018, the Korean Ministry of Environments opened a 40-day public consultation on 2 draft regulations in support of the “Law 1511-Act on the Safety Management of Household Chemical Products and Biocides”. The Act was promulgated on 20 Mar 2018 and will be implemented on the 1st of Jan 2019.

On 9 Apr 2018, the Korean Ministry of Environment (MOE) opened a10-day investigation on biocidal substances used in biocidal products. Korean manufacturers and importers of biocidal products at and above medium-size are requested to fill and submit a questionnaire by 18 April. This move is will serve as a foundation for implementation of the pre-approval system introduced by “Law 15511-Act on the safety Management of Household Chemical Products and Biocides” which begins on the 1st of Jan 2019.

On 30 Mar 2018, Korea officially enacted the “Law 15511-Act on the Safety Management of Household Chemical Products and Biocides (K-BPR)”, which will take effect on 1st Jan 2019. The regulation majorly governs the labeling, approval, authorization and post-management of household chemical products, biocidal products and biocide-treated articles.