STEP 1
'Chemicals' is a very broad term: it includes
lipsticks, shampoos, cosmetics (even ones containing
naturally-occurring ingredients), inks in pens/biros,
solvents, adhesives, plastics, paints and toner/inks in
printer cartridges. However, it does not include articles
(such as plastic chairs, glow sticks, paper, etc.) and
radioactive materials. The chemical can be an element,
compound or ingredient in a mixture.
STEP 2
Examples of commercial purpose include on selling or use
in your business. Non-commercial purpose includes personal
use, teaching purposes, non-profit research and charity.
STEP 3
Your registration is based on whether you introduce
industrial chemicals. The definition of an industrial
chemical is associated with the end use of the chemical.
Examples to give you an idea on how an
industrial chemical is defined by its end use:
-
Glue for wood binding. This is
considered to be an industrial chemical;
-
Chemical for the purposes of pest
control. This would be a pesticide and thus not
considered an industrial chemical;
- Chemical to be used both as a
solvent in paint and as a pool chemical used to kill
algae. The proportion imported for use in paint would be
considered an industrial chemical, and thus requires the
registration of your business. It also must be noted
that all cosmetics are industrial chemicals, except if
they are used for medical-related purposes (such as
anti-dandruff shampoos) and are registered with the
Therapeutics Goods Administration (TGA). Therefore, if
you only import/manufacture chemicals that are solely
for use as a pesticide, veterinary chemical, medicine,
food/food additive, then they are not industrial
chemicals, and hence registration of your business is
not required.
STEP 4
Naturally-occurring' chemicals and biological materials
(e.g. blood), while industrial chemicals are exempt from
NICNAS Registration requirements.
A 'naturally-occurring' chemical is very
narrowly defined under the Act. Many substances do come from
natural origins, but this does not mean they meet the
definition of 'naturally-occurring'.
What has to be considered is the process
involved in deriving or extracting these substances. Under
the Act, only mechanical processes (e.g. dissolution in
water, cold-pressing, etc.) are allowed if substances are to
retain their 'naturally-occurring' status. If a chemical
process (e.g. fractional precipitation) was used, then the
substance derived would no longer qualify as
'naturally-occurring'.
Examples of biological material would
include blood, human or animal tissue, etc.For more
information on which chemicals are within the scope of
NICNAS registration refer to the
Fact Sheet on Relevant Industrial Chemicals (PDF
146Kb)
STEP 5
Now that you have determined that you need to register your
business with NICNAS, the next step is to decide which tier
you should register under. You must then complete the form
NR-1A or
NR-1B if you are exempt) and return it to NICNAS.
Registration Costs There are three levels of registration.
Your registration level, and hence registration cost, is
based on the total value of industrial chemicals imported
and/or manufactured each year.
Please
see the Fees and Charges page of this website.
