On February 20, 2025, the French National Assembly formally passed the "Act to Protect the Public from PFAS Hazards", which aims to reduce its long-term harm to the environment and public health by strictly restricting the use of PFAS in consumer products and industrial emissions.
After being proposed in 2024, the bill was finally passed after a year of review and revision. It marks an important step for France to comprehensively control the PFAS field through systematic legislation, and sets an important example for the international community to deal with such pollutants.
Legislative background
PFAS is a class of synthetic chemicals widely used in industrial manufacturing (such as non-stick pan coatings, waterproof materials, textiles, etc.). Due to its extremely strong chemical stability, it can accumulate in the environment for a long time and enter the human body through the food chain, causing health risks such as cancer and immune system damage.
At present, the attention of various industries around the world to PFAS continues to rise, and various countries/regions have also introduced control measures to meet this challenge.
Although the EU has been discussing the restriction proposal of PFAS, due to the long discussion cycle, France believes that it is necessary to formulate a separate PFAS bill at the national level to deal with PFAS pollution more quickly and effectively and protect public health and environmental safety.
▌ Control of the use of consumer products:
The bill requires that from January 1, 2026, the manufacture, import, export and sale of the following products containing PFAS shall be prohibited:
Cosmetics;
Ski wax;
Textile clothing products, footwear and waterproofing agents (except for defense and emergency service protective equipment).
From January 1, 2030, France will completely ban textiles containing PFAS (except textiles necessary for basic purposes, textiles that contribute to the exercise of national sovereignty and have no alternatives, and technical textiles for industrial use).
The above control does not apply to products with PFAS content less than or equal to the residual value specified in the bill. This exemption clause will exclude products containing trace amounts of PFAS (for example, due to industrial water contamination) from the scope of control, but the specific residual value is not yet clear in the bill and needs to be further stipulated later.
▌ PFAS emissions and water quality control:
The government will establish a national PFAS pollution map, mark all places where PFAS is released, and stipulate purification measures and maximum emission thresholds for these places.
Control PFAS in drinking water. The government is required to report the latest health standards for PFAS in drinking water and provide funding for drinking water purification within one year after the promulgation of this law.
Develop a plan to gradually stop the discharge of PFAS into water bodies within five years.
A water pollution tax (the "polluter pays" principle) is imposed on companies that discharge PFAS into water, with a charge of 100 euros/100g and a starting point of 100g.
Health institutions report annually on the analysis plan, analysis results, and quality of PFAS in drinking water.
The formal passage of the PFAS Act is not only a major breakthrough in France's environmental legislation, but also sends a strong signal in global chemical pollution control, once again confirming the high attention of global regulators to PFAS.
Proactive response is not only about the bottom line of compliance, but also an opportunity for companies to build an image of environmental responsibility and win market trust.
At the same time, Ruiou Technology also recommends that relevant companies identify PFAS substances in products as soon as possible, strengthen the research and development of fluorine-free alternative technologies, and gradually reduce and eliminate PFAS in products to cope with increasingly stringent PFAS management.
Ruiou Technology will also continue to follow up on PFAS regulatory trends, help companies clarify compliance obligations, and help companies do a good job in PFAS compliance.
In addition, Ruiou Technology can also assist companies in PFAS-free certification and use hazard assessment tools to identify safer chemicals, thereby promoting the development of fluorine-free alternatives and improving the standardization, effectiveness and risk response capabilities of corporate compliance.