Decode tattoo ink pigment names, CAS numbers, and CI numbers against EU Regulation 2020/2081. Identify banned and restricted ingredients fast.
"I've watched the EU pigment restrictions devastate studios that didn't see them coming. Pigment Blue 15 was in almost every blue ink on the market. Green 7 was everywhere. These bans aren't bureaucracy, they're about real carcinogen exposure. This decoder cuts through the confusion so you know exactly what's in your inks before a health inspection does."
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</iframe>EU Regulation 2020/2081, which amends Annex XVII of the REACH Regulation, entered into force on 4 January 2022 for new formulations. It restricts hundreds of hazardous substances in tattoo inks and permanent make-up (PMU).
The most significant prohibitions include Pigment Blue 15 and 15:3 (phthalocyanine blues, present in virtually all professional cyan and blue tattoo inks), Pigment Green 7 (chlorinated phthalocyanine), and Pigment Violet 23 (added in the 2023 extension). The regulation also sets strict heavy metal limits, for example, cadmium is limited to 0.5 µg/g and mercury to 0.2 µg/g.
The Colour Index (CI) number is the internationally standardized identifier for colorants and pigments, assigned by the Society of Dyers and Colourists. EU 2020/2081 references pigments by both CI number and CAS number.
Pigment Blue 15 is CI 74160; Pigment Green 7 is CI 74260; Pigment Violet 23 is CI 51319.
When evaluating an ink label or Safety Data Sheet, locate the Section 3 (Composition) and identify any CI numbers listed. This tool cross-references them against the EU restricted list automatically.
Yes. The EU pigment restrictions have driven significant reformulation across the industry. Alternative blue pigments now include Pigment Blue 60 (indanthrone blue, EU-compliant) and Pigment Blue 29 (ultramarine, inorganic).
For greens, chromium oxide (CI 77288) is still permitted when free from hexavalent chromium.
Responsible ink manufacturers have reformulated their ranges with compliant pigments and publish EU Declaration of Conformity certificates. Always request the current conformity certificate from your supplier, reformulated "EU compliant" versions may carry different batch numbers than legacy formulations.
These two labels sit at different stages of the same regulatory pipeline, and treating them the same way will cost you. A REACH-restricted pigment is one named under Annex XVII with a hard concentration limit, if your ink exceeds that limit it is illegal to sell, full stop, and you stop using it immediately.
The SVHC Candidate List is an earlier-stage watchlist: a substance flagged as a concern but not yet restricted, carrying a disclosure obligation above 0.1 percent by weight rather than a ban.
This decoder flags both, but they call for different responses.
A restriction is a stop sign; an SVHC entry is more nuanced and may even be a trace impurity rather than a deliberate ingredient. It is also why "SVHC-free" marketing can be misleading. Read the decoder output with that category awareness, not as a simple red-flag or green-flag binary.
Check tattoo ink and body jewelry ingredients against the ECHA SVHC Candidate List. Paste an SDS block for instant EU REACH screening.
Open REACH SVHC Pigment Checker →Mix and blend tattoo ink colors with precision. Calculate custom pigment ratios and preview color results before mixing.
Open Pigment Ink Mixer →Calculate precise ink coverage percentages for any tattoo design. Optimize ink usage and predict color saturation for professional results.
Open Ink Coverage Calculator →Further reading: Read our breakdown of what the 'toxic ink' panic gets right and wrong
Further reading: Understand the real story behind ink safety headlines
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