On the 18th of September 2012, The EU published REGULATION (EU) No 836/2012 to regulate lead in jewelery, contained in Reach XVII entry 63, and has been enforced since the 9th of October 2013.
On the 25th of September 2014, the European Commission notified the WTO of a draft Commission Regulation to expand the restriction of lead in jewellery to other articles intended for the general public. The proposal places a restriction limit of no more than 0.05% lead content in articles for the general public or their accessible parts which may be placed in the mouth by children during normal, or reasonably foreseeable conditions of use. Otherwise, that limit shall not apply where it can be demonstrated that the rate of lead release from such an article or any such accessible part of an article, whether coated or uncoated, does not exceed 0.05 μg/cm2 per hour (equivalent to 0.05 μg/g/h), and, for coated articles, that the coating is sufficient to ensure that this release rate is not exceeded for a period of at least two years of normal or reasonably foreseeable conditions of use of the article. At the same time, the proposal also raises some exemptions of articles or parts of articles.
On the 22nd of April 2014, The EU publish REGULATION (EU) No 836/2012 to amend Reach XVII entry 63, which will be be enforced starting on the 1st of June 2016.
Highlights of the existing Regulation (EU) No 836/2012 and amended Regulation (EU) No 2015/628 are summarized in the following table.
| SUBSTANCE | CITATION | SCOPE | REQUIREMENT | ENFORCEMENT DATE |
| Lead | Regulation (EU) 836/2012 |
Jewellery or Components to manufacture jewellery | 0.05% | 9-Oct-2013 |
| Regulation (EU) 2015/628 | Articles for the general public or accessible parts thereof which may be placed in the mouth by children during normal or reasonably foreseeable conditions of use | 0.05% or 0.05 mg/cm² per hour (equivalent to 0.05 mg/g/h) | 1-June-2016 |
The following articles or parts of articles are within the scope of exemption:
(a) jewellery articles covered by paragraph 1;
(b) crystal glass as defined in Annex I (categories 1, 2, 3 and 4) to Directive 69/493/EEC;
(c) non-synthetic or reconstructed precious and semi-precious stones (CN code 7103 as established by Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87) unless they have been treated with lead or its compounds or mixtures containing these substances;
(d) enamels, defined as vitrifiable mixtures resulting from the fusion, vitrification or sintering of mineral melted at a temperature of at least 500 °C;
(e) keys and locks, including padlocks;
(f) musical instruments;
(g) articles and parts of articles comprising brass alloys, if the concentration of lead (expressed as metal) in the brass alloy does not exceed 0.5 % by weight;
(h) the tips of writing instruments;
(i) religious articles;
(j) portable zinc-carbon batteries and button cell batteries;
(k) articles within the scope of:
(i) Directive 94/62/EC.
(ii) Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004.
(iii) Directive 2009/48/EC.
(iv) Directive 2011/65/EU.