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 20 March 2018, South Korea officially enacted its biocide regulation, “Law 15511-Act on the Safety Management of Household Chemical Products and Biocides”. This regulation comprises 60 articles organized into 7 chapters plus 5 articles in the Annex.  The new regulation establishes a fundamental framework of safety verification on household chemical products and pre-approval of biocidal substances and products. Depending on the notification and application plan of existing biocidal substances, K-BPR will offer different grace periods for biocidal substances and products. Some deadlines will be due as early as 2020 while others have been extended until 2032. All deadlines and corresponding eligibility criteria/clauses are summarized below.

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.