P-PHENYLENEDIAMINE
Official label name (INCI name, EU glossary of cosmetic ingredient names), No 23226
- Allowed with restrictions (Annex III)
P-PHENYLENEDIAMINE: Allowed with restrictions (Annex III, entry 8a), under Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009.
In plain words
What it is used for
Functions declared by manufacturers:
Hair dyeing: colours hair.
What the rules say
Allowed, with restrictions: Annex III sets the product types allowed and a warning to be printed on the packaging. Ingredient lists do not give quantities, so the concentration cannot be checked on the label; the warning can.
The text of the annexes
Allowed with restrictions
This entry covers the same substance as P-PHENYLENEDIAMINE (same CAS number in the CosIng inventory): its conditions apply.
- Entry
- Annex III, No 8a
- Substance
- p-Phenylenediamine and its salts
- CAS
- 106-50-3 / 624-18-0 / 16245-77-5
- EC
- 203-404-7 / 210-834-9 / 240-357-1
- Product type
- Hair dye substance in oxidative hair dye products
- Other conditions
- (a) General use (b) Professional use For (a) and (b): After mixing under oxidative conditions the maximum concentration applied to hair must not exceed 2 % calculated as free base
- Warnings
- (a) To be printed on the label: The mixing ratio. ‘ Hair colourants can cause severe allergic reactions. Read and follow instructions. This product is not intended for use on persons under the age of 16. Temporary “black henna” tattoos may increase your risk of allergy. Do not colour your hair if: — you have a rash on your face or sensitive, irritated and damaged scalp, — you have ever experienced any reaction after colouring your hair, — you have experienced a reaction to a temporary “black henna” tattoo in the past. Contains phenylenediamines. Do not use to dye eyelashes or eyebrows.’ (b) To be printed on the label: The mixing ratio. ‘For professional use only. Hair colourants can cause severe allergic reactions. Read and follow instructions. This product is not intended for use on persons under the age of 16. Temporary “black henna” tattoos may increase your risk of allergy. Do not colour your hair if: — you have a rash on your face or sensitive, irritated and damaged scalp, — you have ever experienced any reaction after colouring your hair, — you have experienced a reaction to a temporary “black henna” tattoo in the past. Contains phenylenediamines. Wear suitable gloves.’
Dates in the act (3)
- Entry into force on 15 May 2013
- Application from 11 July 2013
It shall apply from 11 July 2013.
- Entry into force on 11 July 2013
Excerpts from the English text published in the Official Journal. A date may concern only some substances of the act: the excerpt says so.
Allowed with restrictions
- Entry
- Annex III, No 8b
- Substance
- p- Phenylene-diamine and its salts
- Glossary names
- p-Phenylenediamine; p-Phenylenediamine HCl; p-Phenylenediamine Sulphate
- CAS
- 106-50-3 / 624-18-0 / 16245-77-5
- EC
- 203-404-7 / 210-834-9 / 240-357-1
- Product type
- Products intended for colouring eyelashes
- Other conditions
- After mixing under oxidative conditions the maximum concentration applied to eyelashes must not exceed 2 % calculated as free base. For professional use only.
- Warnings
- To be printed on the label: The mixing ratio. “For professional use only. This product can cause severe allergic reactions. Read and follow instructions. This product is not intended for use on persons under the age of 16. Temporary ‘black henna’ tattoos may increase the risk of allergy. Eyelashes shall not be coloured if the consumer: — has a rash on the face or sensitive, irritated and damaged scalp, — has experienced any reaction after colouring hair or eyelashes, — has experienced a reaction to a temporary ‘black henna’ tattoo in the past. Rinse eyes immediately if product comes into contact with them. Contains phenylenediamines. Wear suitable gloves.” ’
Dates in the act (5)
- Application from 11 July 2013
It shall apply from 11 July 2013.
- Entry into force on 11 July 2013
- Entry into force on 27 November 2013
- Application from 1 July 2014
However, the following provisions in the Annex shall apply from 1 July 2014: (a) the provisions in column ‘i’ of point 1 and of points 3 to 9 relating to the use of the substances in products intended for colouring eyelashes; (b) points 2 and 10.
- Entry into force on 1 July 2014
Excerpts from the English text published in the Official Journal. A date may concern only some substances of the act: the excerpt says so.
Identity
- CosIng identifier
- 37249
- CAS (according to CosIng)
- 106-50-3
- EC (according to CosIng)
- 203-404-7
- Declared functions
- Hair dyeing
- Wikidata
- Q415024
- PubChem
- 7814
- ECHA InfoCard
- 100.003.096
- InChIKey
- CBCKQZAAMUWICA-UHFFFAOYSA-N
Classified hazard (CLP Regulation)
A classification describes an intrinsic hazard, not a risk: the risk depends on the dose, the form and the exposure.
p-phenylenediamine
No harmonised CMR classification
- Hazard classes
- Acute Tox. 3 *
Acute Tox. 3 *
Acute Tox. 3 *
Eye Irrit. 2
Skin Sens. 1
Aquatic Acute 1
Aquatic Chronic 1 - Hazard statements
- H331 H311 H301 H319 H317 H400 H410
EU product alerts (Safety Gate)
43 alerts on cosmetic products cite this name in their hazard description. An alert targets a specific product, not the ingredient itself; each alert states the reason (prohibited substance, limit exceeded, missing labelling, and so on).
- 25 September 2026: Shampoo, Hairfiller, Sweden (“Serious risk”) alert
- 25 September 2026: Shampoo, Hairfiller, Sweden (“Serious risk”) alert
- 25 September 2026: Shampoo, Hairfiller, Sweden (“Serious risk”) alert
- 18 September 2026: Hair dye, Topline, Germany (“Serious risk”) alert
- 31 July 2026: Hair dye, Black Rose Kali Mehandi, Germany (“Serious risk”) alert
- 12 June 2026: Hair dye, ProfixOrganics, Austria (“Serious risk”) alert
- 15 May 2026: Hair dye, Royal, Germany (“Serious risk”) alert
- 27 March 2026: Shampoo, Ronuls PS Professional, Germany (“Serious risk”) alert
- 11 October 2024: Hair dye, Shringar, Germany (“Serious risk”) alert
- 27 October 2023: Hair dye, Shringar Black Henna, Germany (“Serious risk”) alert
Elsewhere in the world
Information on other jurisdictions. What is covered, and what is not yet.
United Kingdom (Great Britain)
- Allowed with restrictions (Annex III)
Same entries as in the European Union. Conditions (concentrations, warnings) may differ: they are not compared here.
Switzerland
Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 applies in Switzerland (Article 54 of the Ordinance on Foodstuffs and Utility Articles).
United States, federal rules
None of the integrated sections of the federal code (21 CFR 700.11 to 700.27 and 250.250) targets this name. The FDA does not publish a list of allowed ingredients.
South Korea
- Prohibited: p-페닐렌디아민
별표 1 (prohibited substances), entry 905, page 46. Conditions (source text, in Korean): ※ 유의사항 2: 1) 표시는 [별표 2] 염모제 성분에서 정한 기준에 적합한 경우는 제외한다.
- Restricted: p-페닐렌디아민
별표 2, 염모제 성분 (hair colorants), entry 14, page 18. Limit: 산화염모제에 2.0 %. Conditions (source text, in Korean): 비고: 기타 제품에는 사용금지
Recorded cosmetics that contain it
17 recorded products list it, according to Open Beauty Facts contributors. Records are dated: the formula may have changed. See the list (page in French).
Glossary: Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1175. Page updated on 21 October 2026.