Consultation
The Australian Industrial Chemicals Introduction Scheme (AICIS) is consulting on linking National Industrial Chemicals Notification and Assessment Scheme (NICNAS) public assessment reports to Australian Inventory of Industrial Chemicals (AIIC) records. NICNAS was the predecessor to AICIS which was introduced in 2020.
The main aim of these changes is to simplify requirements in relation to chemicals which have a specific information requirement (SIR). As it stands, users need to manually locate NICNAS reports on the AICIS website because AIIC chemical records are not connected to the previous assessment database.
Proposed changes involve incorporating direct links to around 700 chemical records that feature the CAS number or chemical name in the NICNAS report. Most polymers of low concern (PLCs) will be excluded from the direct linking process, except for about 15 polymers with broader SIR criteria.
Changes are planned for mid-2025, with public comments due by 23 April 2025.
Updates to Industrial Chemicals Categorisation Guidelines
The following updates will be implemented regarding the Industrial Chemicals Categorisation Guidelines:
- The Industrial Chemicals Categorisation Guidelines will now be updated on an annual basis and the updates will take effect each September
- AICIS will conduct public consultations from September to October on proposed changes for the following year, announcing revisions between February and March. This provides a six-month transition period before updates take effect in September for companies to prepare for the changes.
- Following last year’s consultation, the 2025 update will add 120 high-hazard chemicals to the list of chemicals with high hazards for categorisation. As well as some minor editorial changes to the legal text.
- Finally, it was also announced that AICIS will provide training or information sessions if future updates include “substantial or complex” changes.
Published April 14, 2025
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