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Thailand’s Hazardous Substance Act has been revised three times since it was first issued in 1992. The latest Amendment of the Hazardous Substance Act was published in the Thai Government Gazette on Apr 30th, 2019 as B.E. 2562 (2019). The amendments will come into force 180 days following the publication, on Oct 27th, 2019. The revised Act includes criteria on transit, re-import, re-export and revises the criteria on advertising of hazardous substances for more efficient control of hazardous substances.
Speaking at ChemCon held in Seoul on 19 Jun 2019, Ms. Somsri Suwanjaras from Thailand’s Department of Industrial Works (DIW) introduced the current status on hazardous chemical control as well as future plans. Ms. Somsri summarized the most notable amendments regarding transboundary activities and advertisement.
Transit (transboundary)
Transiting through Thailand with Type 1 and 2 hazardous substances requires notification of authorities prior to each transit and for Type 3 hazardous substances a permission should be obtained in advance. A transit license will be issued for those that have completed notification or those that have obtained permission in advance of transit. However, transit of Type 4 hazardous substances is prohibited. The receipt of notification of Type 2 hazardous substance and import license of Type 3 hazardous substance issued before the effective date of this revised Act can also be considered as a transit license
Re-import/Re-export
After revision, if a company re-imports or re-exports a notified Type 1 hazardous substance, there is no need to notify authorities again. For a registered Type 2 or 3 hazardous substance, the company is only required to declare the re-importation/exportation of Type 2 and 3 hazardous substances.
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The revised Act empowers officers to regulate and monitor advertisement of hazardous substances and penalize misleading advertisements.
Ms. Somsir also mentioned that a new Chemical Act is under development. However, it is still in the very early stage. In addition, it will take some time to see the national chemical inventory finalized.
