Overview
ECHA is the European Chemicals Agency. It is the EU body that puts the bloc's chemicals rules into practice, based in Helsinki, Finland.
The agency manages four pieces of legislation: REACH for the registration and control of chemicals, CLP for classification and labelling, the Biocidal Products Regulation, and the PIC regulation covering imports and exports of certain hazardous chemicals.
What ECHA runs
Under REACH, ECHA handles a four-part process often summed up by its own initials: registration of substances, evaluation of dossiers and substances, restriction of uses that pose unacceptable risks, and authorisation of the most concerning substances.
Why it matters for products
If you sell products in the EU, the lists ECHA keeps drive your duties. The Candidate List tells you which SVHCs trigger communication and notification, and the SCIP database is where those notifications land. ECHA also publishes guidance that shapes how companies read REACH and CLP in practice.
Note: general educational information, not legal advice. Check the official source before relying on it.