On June 11, 2024, the Ministry of Environment of Taiwan, China announced revisions to the Permit Registration and Approval Regulations for Toxic and Concerned Chemical Substances, which aim to promote the safety management of chemical substances.
Article 8: New Environmental Monitoring Requirements
Operators manufacturing or using toxic and concerned chemical substances must submit a diagram showing the flow of pollutants in air, water, waste, and toxic substances at their operational sites when applying for permits, registration documents, or approval documents, including changes and extensions. These diagrams serve as review materials intended to assist environmental agencies in tracking the flow of pollutants across different media. However, operators using substances only for experimentation, research, or educational purposes and in quantities below the graded operational amount are exempt from this requirement.
Article 10: Clarifies Review Scope and Obligations
The regulations stipulate that municipal and county (city) authorities handling applications, changes, or extensions of chemical substance-related documents must not impose any obligations not specified by law. The review scope must be strictly confined to the specific content of the application, change, or extension, and must not extend to other matters.
Article 13: Certificate Issuance Deadlines
Municipal and county (city) authorities are required to issue permits, registration documents, or approval documents within fourteen days after the review to improve administrative efficiency.
Article 17: Improves Document Transparency and Accuracy
Permits, registration documents, and approval documents for toxic and concerned chemical substances must include the following information:
- The name, address, control number of the operator, and the name of the responsible person.
- The name, address, and control number of the operational site.
- The issuance date and validity period.
- Additional remarks and attachments, including the name, control number, sequence number, concentration, operational behavior, usage, approval number, and initial approval date of the toxic and concerned chemical substances.
If the authorities find any writing, calculation, or other obvious errors in the related documents, they must correct them immediately and notify the operator.
Article 19: Simplifies Export Approval Process
When exporting Class 1 to 3 toxic chemical substances, exporters shall only to fill in the export registration and attach relevant proof documents for each batch. This removes the previous step of needing local authorities to stamp the documents, significantly promoting export efficiency and reducing administrative burdens on enterprises.
Through these revisions, Taiwan not only strengthens the management of toxic chemical substances but also optimizes related administrative processes, thereby reducing the burden on businesses and the public.
