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Comparable hazard assessment

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A comparable hazard assessment is a type of assessment certificate application. They allow an applicant to use certain hazard assessments previously conducted by an overseas or Australian assessment body.

Icon of a certificate with Australian Government coat of arms

Criteria for using assessments 

You can apply to use a comparable hazard assessment if you meet all the criteria.

These include:

  • your chemical is not on the Inventory
  • you are planning to apply for an assessment certificate

Assessment bodies 

For assessment bodies, one of the following overseas or Australian assessment bodies must have already assessed your introduction. 

  • National Industrial Chemicals Notification and Assessment Scheme (NICNAS)
  • Australian Industrial Chemicals Introduction Scheme (AICIS)
  • Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) / Health Canada (HC) – (certain Schedules)
  • United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA)
  • European Commission (EC) Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) or its equivalent former committees — the Scientific Committee on Consumer Products (SCCP) and the Scientific Committee on Cosmetic Products and Non-Food Products (SCCNFP)
  • Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA)
  • Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA)
  • Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ)
  • International parallel process assessments where Australia was involved as a secondary jurisdiction and Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) / Health Canada (HC) or the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) performed the risk assessment
Contact us if you’d like to know more about eligible assessments and how to get permission to use them. 

How to apply for a comparable hazard assessment

Before you start your application, you will need to contact us for further guidance.  Applications are submitted in AICIS Business Services under the application type ‘Comparable hazard assessment’.

Canada template

If you are using a Canadian report

If you want to use a Canadian report in an application, it must have been completed by Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) / Health Canada (HC). We do not accept other Canadian reports.

The Canadian notifier must authorise ECCC to share the reports about your chemical with us.

  1. The Canadian notifier must fill in the relevant sections of the authority to release assessment report to AICIS using their own letterhead.
  2. The Canadian notifier must send the completed letter to ECCC. 

We recommend that you do this at least 60 calendar days before you submit your application to us.

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