Brussels, 5 October 2020 – Pinfa welcomes the conclusion of the report “Evaluation of the tax on chemicals in certain electronics” presented to the Swedish government on I October 2020, which found the chemical tax to be ineffective in its current form.
The evaluation conducted by the Swedish Tax Agency and the Swedish Chemicals Agency concluded that the chemical tax had not resulted in a reduced presence of chlorine, bromine and phosphorus in flame retardants in people’s home environment.
A revised tax structure underpinned by a sustainability-based approach is needed to avoid the drawbacks identified in the report.
pinfa stands ready to work together on an improved structure and recommends to:
• setup a joint stakeholder chemical expert group,
• conduct a thorough review of the flame retardants in scope, and
• add a zero-tax alternative.
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About Swedish tax
On 1 July 2017 a new tax on chemicals in certain electronics came into force in Sweden. The goal of this tax is to reduce the occurrence of and exposure to flame retardants in people’s home environments.
About pinfa
pinfa is the Phosphorus, Inorganic and Nitrogen (PIN) Flame Retardants Association (a Sector Group within Cefic, the European Chemical Industry Council). We bring together (with pinfa North America and pinfa China) nearly 40 companies who manufacture or use non-halogenated flame retardants, smoke suppressants and synergists, based on chemistries of one or more of phosphorus, nitrogen and inorganics.
For more information, check KEMI press release and link to report