PIC (Prior Informed Consent)

Reg. (EU) 649/2012 (PIC) represents the implementation of the Rotterdam Convention in the EU legislative system.

This international treaty (implemented on September 10, 1998) was signed by over 150 countries worldwide, including the European Union, and has the aim of regulating the import/export of highly dangerous pesticide formulas and chemicals for industrial use which are forbidden or subject to strict restrictions.

A key element of this regulation is the so-called “PIC Procedure” (Prior Informed Consent), which establishes that the products under the Convention may only be supplied subject to prior informed consent by the importing Country. 

Reg. (EU) 649/2012 (PIC) applies EU-wide in an even stricter and more restrictive manner than required by the Convention: in fact there is a higher number of substances involved and more extensive related obligations.

Every European economic operator that seeks to export chemical substances regulated by Reg. (EU) 649/2012 (PIC) must therefore ascertain the applicable obligations and perform specific procedures (e.g.: export notice, PIC procedure, etc.) in order to obtain the “go-ahead” to export from the Competent Authorities of the countries involved.