State PFAS Bans in Cosmetics Expand Ahead of 2026

The first wave of prohibitions on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in cosmetics and cosmetic products took effect earlier this year, with bans in California, Colorado, Maryland, Minnesota, and Washington commencing on January 1, 2025. Beginning January 1, 2026, Connecticut, Maine, and Vermont will begin implementing similar prohibitions, and an additional five states are poised to impose similar bans in 2027 and beyond. The expanding regulatory landscape has meaningful implications for companies across the cosmetics supply chain.

As attention to PFAS in consumer products—and cosmetics in particular—grows and prompts further legislative and regulatory action, businesses that manufacture, distribute, or sell cosmetics or packaging and components used in cosmetics would be well served by diligently monitoring the growing patchwork of prohibitions and requirements as they plan for and implement strategies to comply, which may include product and packaging changes.

UPCOMING PROHIBITIONS ON PFAS IN COSMETICS IN 2026

Connecticut

Connecticut’s Public Act 24-59/Substitute Senate Bill No. 292[1] implements a phased approach to prohibiting PFAS in cosmetic products. Beginning on July 1, 2026, manufacturers may not manufacture, sell, offer for sale, or distribute for sale cosmetic products containing intentionally added PFAS unless the manufacturer labels the product and provides prior notification in writing to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP). This notification must contain a brief description of the product, the contact information of the manufacturer, the amount of PFAS in the product, and the purpose of the PFAS in the product. The product label must be clearly visible and indicate that the product includes PFAS. “Intentionally added” means PFAS deliberately added during the manufacture of a product to perform a specific function.[2]

A manufacturer may continue selling cosmetic products with adequate prior notification to DEEP until January 1, 2028, when the bill implements a categorical prohibition on the sale and manufacture of cosmetic products with intentionally added PFAS. While it may be difficult to prove one way or the other, there is an exception for cosmetic products with an unavoidable trace quantity of PFAS. An unavoidable trace quantity is one that is “attributable to impurities of natural or synthetic ingredients, the manufacturing process, storage or migration from packaging.”

A “cosmetic product” under the Connecticut law means articles, excluding soap, that are intended to be rubbed, poured, sprinkled or sprayed on, introduced into or otherwise applied to the human body or any part thereof for the purpose of cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness or altering the appearance of.[3] This definition includes internal components and does not include a product that requires a prescription for distribution or dispensation or hydrofluorocarbon or hydrofluoroolefins used as propellants in cosmetics.

Maine

LD 1537[4] amended Maine’s existing PFAS consumer products law by adding several products, including cosmetics. Beginning January 1, 2026, a person may not sell, offer for sale, or distribute for sale a cosmetic product containing intentionally added PFAS, except any cosmetic product sold in a fluorinated container or in a container that contains intentionally added PFAS. “Intentionally added PFAS” means either PFAS added to a product or one of its components to provide a specific function or any degradation by-products of PFAS. A cosmetic product includes internal components but does not include soap or a product requiring a prescription for distribution or dispensing.[5]

Vermont

Senate Bill 25[6] added cosmetic products to Vermont’s existing PFAS consumer products prohibition. The law prohibits the manufacture, sale, offer for sale, distribution for sale, or distribution for use of cosmetic products with intentionally added PFAS beginning on January 1, 2026. Cosmetic products include internal components and do not include soap, dietary supplements, or food and drugs approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). There is an exception for cosmetic products with a technically unavoidable trace quantity of PFAS, defined as a trace quantity caused by impurities of natural or synthetic ingredients, the manufacturing process, storage, or migration from packaging.

CURRENT BANS ON PFAS IN COSMETICS

California

Under California’s PFAS-Free Cosmetics Act, Assembly Bill (AB) 2771,[7] no person or entity shall manufacture, sell, deliver, hold, or offer for sale in commerce any cosmetic product containing intentionally added PFAS beginning January 1, 2025. For more information on this prohibition, please refer to our previous LawFlash.  

Colorado

Effective January 1, 2025, Colorado House Bill 22-1345[8] prohibits the sale, offer for sale, distribution for sale, or distribution for use of cosmetics with intentionally added PFAS. “Intentionally added PFAS” means either PFAS chemicals that a manufacturer has intentionally added to a product and have a functional or technical effect on the product or PFAS that are intentional breakdown products of an added chemical.[9]

The law’s definition of cosmetics includes the following list of examples:

• Skin moisturizer
• Perfume
• Lipstick
• Nail polish
• Eye or facial makeup preparation
• Shampoo
• Conditioner
• Permanent wave
• Hair dye
• Deodorant

The bill excludes from the definition of “cosmetic” any product that requires a prescription for distribution or dispensation. It also excludes hydrofluoroolefins used as propellants in cosmetics, although this provision is set to be repealed starting January 1, 2027.

Maryland

Beginning January 1, 2025, Maryland’s House Bill 643[10] prohibits a person from knowingly manufacturing, selling, delivering, holding, or offering for sale a cosmetic product containing several intentionally added ingredients, including thirteen types of PFAS. An exception is provided for cosmetic products that were manufactured to comply with the prohibition but contain a technically unavoidable trace quantity of PFAS. The law’s definition of cosmetic includes internal components and excludes soap.

Minnesota

Minnesota bill HF 2310[11] (known as Amara’s Law) prohibits the sale, offer for sale, or distribution for sale of cosmetics with intentionally added PFAS starting January 1, 2025. A cosmetic includes the internal components thereof and excludes soap. The final rules implementing the Minnesota law were approved by the state’s legislature on December 8, 2025.[12]

Washington

Under Washington’s House Bill/Senate Bill 1047,[13] no person may manufacture, knowingly sell, offer for sale, distribute for sale, or distribute for use a cosmetic product containing intentionally added PFAS beginning January 1, 2025. The law’s definition of cosmetic includes internal components and excludes soap and prescription drugs approved by the FDA. The Washington Department of Health website lists certain examples of cosmetic products, including foundation, moisturizers, cleansers, nail polish, blush, deodorant, shaving cream, shampoo, and waterproof mascara.[14] “Intentionally added” was defined through a separate rulemaking process as a chemical serving an intended function in a cosmetic product or an ingredient in the cosmetic product; this definition takes effect January 1, 2027.[15]

LOOKING AHEAD: FUTURE PROHIBITIONS AND CONSIDERATIONS FOR BUSINESSES

Several more states are poised to roll out similar PFAS prohibitions in cosmetics, including New Hampshire, Oregon, Rhode Island (starting in 2027), New Mexico (starting in 2028), and Illinois (starting in 2032). Other states have pending legislation containing similar bans, including New York and New Jersey. On the federal level, under the Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act of 2022,[16] the FDA is tasked with publishing a report by December 29, 2025, assessing the use and safety of PFAS in cosmetic products, which may spur future state and federal regulation of PFAS in cosmetics.

As these state prohibitions are implemented and additional bans are enacted, businesses should monitor this growing patchwork of regulations and laws to help ensure compliance and minimize potential enforcement and litigation risks. Manufacturers need to assess the potential for PFAS in cosmetics and packaging components in order to implement a compliance strategy that comports with applicable state laws where those products are sold. Distributors and retailers, in turn, need to work closely with manufacturers to ensure they are in compliance with the prohibitions.

Businesses should be assessing compliance with individual state-specific requirements, including the potential applicability of differing definitions of key terms like “intentionally added” and what exceptions, if any, are provided under these definitions and under the prohibitions. Attention should also be given to states like Connecticut, Maine, and Vermont—which define “cosmetic” as including the product’s internal components—and whether these states’ PFAS prohibitions also apply to a cosmetic product’s packaging or certain internal components like a plastic pump or dispenser. For example, Minnesota considers packaging that is “integral to contain, protect, or dispense the product” as part of the regulated cosmetic product.[17]

HOW WE CAN HELP

Our lawyers stand ready to advise businesses on these upcoming PFAS prohibitions, assisting them in ensuring their practices comply with these significant and novel requirements.