Two Chemicals Added to Domestic Substances List

Summary#

• Order 2026-87-08-01 Amending the Domestic Substances List: SOR/2026-161 adds two chemical substances to the federal inventory called the Domestic Substances List and keeps special reporting rules (called significant new activity or SNAc requirements) for certain new uses of those substances.
• The Order was registered on June 30, 2026, published in the Canada Gazette on July 15, 2026, and phases in lower notification thresholds starting May 3, 2027 (with a transitional period that ends May 2, 2027).

What it does#

• Adds these two substances to the Domestic Substances List:
  • CAS number 26401-35-4 (hexanedioic acid, 1,6-diisotridecyl ester).
  • Confidential Accession Number 19814-2 (listed under a masked name).
• Keeps the SNAc reporting requirement for both substances. That means anyone planning certain new uses must notify the federal government before starting.
• Sets transitional quantity limits for notifications between now and May 2, 2027, and tighter rules from May 3, 2027:
  • For CAS 26401-35-4:
    • Transitional phase: SNAc applies when manufacture or import for consumer products or cosmetics is above 1 000 kg per year and the product contains the substance at 0.1% or more by weight.
    • After May 3, 2027: the import threshold is lowered to 10 kg per year; the Order’s wording means manufacture/use of such consumer products or cosmetics (at 0.1% or more) is captured without the earlier high‑quantity threshold.
  • For CAN 19814-2:
    • Transitional phase: SNAc applies when manufacture or import for consumer products or cosmetics is above 100 kg per year at 0.1% or more.
    • After May 3, 2027: the import threshold is lowered to 10 kg per year; manufacture/use of such consumer products or cosmetics (at 0.1% or more) is captured without the earlier high‑quantity threshold.
• Anyone proposing a significant new activity must give the government detailed information at least 90 days before starting. The Order lists the kinds of information required (toxicity, exposure, dermal penetration, etc.).
• Some activities are excluded from notification:
  • Research and development, site‑limited intermediate uses, export‑only products.
  • Uses already regulated under other federal laws (for example, pesticides, fertilizers, feeds).
  • Certain impurities, transient intermediates, wastes, and some mixtures or manufactured items.
• If a product already contains the substance as a consumer product or cosmetic at the time it is transferred, the receiver may not have to be separately notified under the transfer notification rule.

Who's affected#

• Companies that make, import, formulate or sell consumer products and cosmetics that might contain these substances at 0.1% or more. That includes brand owners, contract manufacturers, and importers.
• Businesses planning new or expanded uses of these chemicals in Canada — especially if they would import or manufacture quantities near or above the transitional thresholds (for example, 100 kg, 1 000 kg) or the final 10 kg import threshold.
• Laboratories or consultants that prepare the technical data needed for a Significant New Activity Notification.
• Most current users are not automatically affected for existing activities; the Order targets significant new activities. Research-only, site-limited, and export-only uses are explicitly excluded.

Why it matters#

• Adding a substance to the Domestic Substances List is mainly administrative: it means the substances are no longer treated as totally “new” under the New Substances Notification Regulations. But keeping the SNAc rules keeps a safety gate for risky new uses.
• The government wants to make sure potentially risky new uses in consumer products and cosmetics are assessed before they start. That matters because those products can lead to repeated exposure of the public (skin contact, incidental ingestion, inhalation).
• The transitional thresholds give companies a short window with higher quantity limits. After May 3, 2027, much smaller import quantities can trigger the notification requirement, so planning is more important for anyone thinking of introducing these chemicals into Canadian consumer products or cosmetics.