Most cosmetic products contain fragrance. A typical perfume or scented moisturizer uses dozens of individual fragrance compounds, blended together and listed on the label as a single word: "Parfum" or "Fragrance."
That single word is about to get a lot more specific — in the EU, at least.
EU Regulation 2023/1545, published in July 2023, expanded the list of fragrance allergens that must be individually named on cosmetic product labels from 24 to 80. New products placed on the EU market must comply by July 31, 2026. Existing products already on shelves have until July 31, 2028.
We checked our 10-country regulatory database to see how many of these allergens are regulated elsewhere.
What changed in the EU
Before 2023, the EU required individual labeling for 24 fragrance allergens. If a product contained Linalool above 0.001% in a leave-on product (or 0.01% in a rinse-off product), the label had to say "Linalool" — not just "Parfum."
Regulation 2023/1545 added 56 new allergens to this list, bringing the total to 80. The thresholds remain the same:
| Product type | Labeling threshold |
|---|---|
| Leave-on products (creams, serums, perfumes) | 0.001% |
| Rinse-off products (shampoos, cleansers) | 0.01% |
If any of the 80 listed allergens exceed these concentrations, they must appear by name in the ingredient list. A perfume that previously listed "Parfum" and perhaps 3–4 individual allergens might now need to list 15–20.
The regulation is based on a 2012 opinion by the EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS), which identified 56 additional fragrance substances that cause allergic contact dermatitis in humans.
What our database shows
We queried 20 of the most common fragrance allergens across our 10-country database. The pattern is consistent: the EU regulates them, and most other countries do not.
EU-only labeling (no regulation elsewhere)
These allergens have EU labeling requirements but zero regulatory entries in the other 9 countries we track:
| Allergen | EU status |
|---|---|
| Linalool | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
| Geraniol | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
| Citronellol | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
| Eugenol | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
| Coumarin | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
| Cinnamal | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
| Cinnamyl Alcohol | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
| Farnesol | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
| Benzyl Benzoate | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
| Benzyl Salicylate | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
| Amyl Cinnamal | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
| Anise Alcohol | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
| Hexyl Cinnamal | Labeling at 0.001% / 0.01% |
These are some of the most widely used fragrance compounds in cosmetics. Linalool alone appears in a majority of scented products. In the EU, each of these must be individually labeled above the threshold. In most other markets in our database, they are simply part of "Fragrance" on the label.
Allergens with additional restrictions
A few allergens go beyond labeling:
| Allergen | EU | Other countries |
|---|---|---|
| Hydroxycitronellal | 1.0% max + labeling | No regulation |
| Isoeugenol | 0.02% max + labeling | No regulation |
| Benzyl Alcohol | 1.0% as preservative + labeling | Korea 1.0%, Taiwan 1.0%, Brazil 1.0%, Argentina 1.0%, ASEAN/China regulated as preservative |
| Butylphenyl Methylpropional (Lilial) | Banned | ASEAN: Banned. Others: no regulation |
Benzyl Alcohol is the most broadly regulated allergen — but not as a fragrance. It is regulated as a preservative. Its 1.0% concentration limit appears in 7 of our 10 markets. The EU adds a labeling requirement on top of the preservative restriction.
Butylphenyl Methylpropional, commonly known as Lilial, was banned by the EU in March 2022 because of its classification as a reproductive toxicant. ASEAN followed with its own ban. Korea, Japan, China, and the US have no ban on Lilial in our database.
What about Korea?
Korea's cosmetic regulation does include allergen labeling for some fragrance ingredients. According to the Korea Cosmetic Association (KCIA), products must label certain fragrance allergens at the same thresholds as the EU (0.001% leave-on, 0.01% rinse-off) when they are used as fragrance components.
However, Korea's allergen list does not cover all 80 substances in the EU's expanded list. The exact scope of Korea's list was not independently verified for this article.
Korea also has a conditional restriction on Limonene — one of the most common fragrance compounds. Limonene is not banned outright. It is banned only when its peroxide value exceeds 20 mmol/L, meaning oxidized (degraded) Limonene is prohibited while fresh Limonene is permitted. This is a safety measure specific to the stability of the ingredient, not a restriction on Limonene itself.
Why this matters for K-Beauty brands
A K-Beauty product sold in Korea lists "향료" (fragrance) on its label, followed by individual allergen names if they exceed the threshold — similar to the EU approach. But the EU's expanded list of 80 substances is broader than Korea's current requirements, meaning EU-bound products may need to declare more individual allergens than the same product sold domestically.
For brands that export to Europe, this means:
Label redesign. Ingredient lists get longer. Packaging space that was previously occupied by marketing copy may need to be used for regulatory text. Some brands are moving to e-labeling (QR codes linking to full ingredient lists) to manage this.
Formula transparency. Brands need to know the exact composition of their fragrance blends — something that fragrance suppliers have traditionally kept confidential. The EU regulation forces a level of transparency that the supply chain was not built for.
Market-specific packaging. Brands may need separate packaging for EU and non-EU markets, or adopt the most restrictive labeling globally.
For a broader look at how EU and Korean cosmetic regulations differ, see our comparison of ingredients banned in Europe but legal in Korea.
A 10-country summary
| Allergen | EU | KR | JP | CN | TW | ASEAN | BR | AR | US | CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linalool | Label | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Geraniol | Label | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Citronellol | Label | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Eugenol | Label | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Coumarin | Label | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Hexyl Cinnamal | Label | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Benzyl Alcohol | 1.0%+Label | 1.0% | — | Reg | 1.0% | Reg | 1.0% | 1.0% | — | — |
| Hydroxycitronellal | 1.0%+Label | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Isoeugenol | 0.02%+Label | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Lilial | Ban | — | — | — | — | Ban | — | — | — | — |
"Label" = must be individually named on the ingredient list above 0.001% (leave-on) or 0.01% (rinse-off). "Reg" = regulated with conditions. "—" = no regulation in our database. Table shows a subset of the 80 EU-listed allergens.
Note: Korea has its own allergen labeling guidelines (administered by the Korea Cosmetic Association and MFDS) at the same thresholds as the EU, but these are not fully captured in our database's regulation records. The "—" for Korea in this table reflects the database status, not the absence of all Korean allergen requirements.
Methodology and Sources
Regulatory data was retrieved from a database of 21,796 cosmetic ingredients with regulatory records spanning 10 countries. We queried 20 common fragrance allergens from the EU's expanded list.
EU regulatory details are based on Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/1545 of July 26, 2023, amending Annex III of the Cosmetics Regulation (EC) 1223/2009. The SCCS opinion referenced is SCCS/1459/11 (June 2012). Korean allergen labeling information is based on the Korea Cosmetic Association (KCIA) ingredient database.
The database is available as an API at K-Beauty Cosmetic Ingredients on RapidAPI. For chemical substance regulatory data, see K-REACH Chemical Substance API.
Important Notice: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not legal, regulatory, or medical advice. Cosmetic regulations change frequently — always verify current status against official sources before making business or personal decisions. For full terms, see our Disclaimer.
Decoded Korea publishes data-driven analysis of Korean cosmetic ingredients, chemical regulations, and safety data.
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