Ingredient Index

Is Lilial banned in Europe?

Banned in EU

Yes: lilial (butylphenyl methylpropional), once one of the most-used floral notes in perfumery, has been banned in all EU cosmetics since March 2022 as a reproductive toxicant; it remains legal in the US, though the fragrance industry's own standards now prohibit it.

CAS: 80-54-6 Also seen as: Butylphenyl Methylpropional, BMHCA

What the EU does

Banned since March 1, 2022. Lilial (the lily-of-the-valley note in countless perfumes, shampoos, and detergent-adjacent products) was classified as a category 1B reproductive toxicant (suspected of damaging fertility, based on animal studies), and Commission Regulation (EU) 2021/1902 added it to Annex II of the Cosmetics Regulation. Before the full ban it had already been a listed allergen requiring declaration on labels.

The perfumery impact was enormous: it forced reformulation of classics across every major house, the event fragrance forums still discuss as the reference case of regulation reshaping scent. EU enforcement sweeps continue to catch old stock and imports.

Citation Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, Annex II, entry 1666; Commission Regulation (EU) 2021/1902

What the US does

Legal under US law: the FDA imposes no restriction, and fragrance compositions need not disclose it individually on US labels (it can hide inside "fragrance").

In practice the US market is converging anyway: IFRA, the fragrance industry's global self-regulatory body, prohibited butylphenyl methylpropional in its standards, and the major fragrance suppliers are signatories. New mainstream formulations on both continents have dropped it; legacy and gray-market stock is where it persists.

Citation FD&C Act general safety standard; IFRA Standards (BMHCA prohibited)

Products that commonly contain it

Pre-2022, lilial was nearly everywhere scent was. It appeared in:

Fine fragrances (lily-of-the-valley, "clean floral" notes)
Shampoos and conditioners
Body lotions and washes
Deodorants
Scented laundry products (regulated separately, also reformulated)

What to look for on a label

EU labeling history makes this one traceable:

"Butylphenyl methylpropional" on EU ingredient lists (pre-ban stock); it had to be declared as an allergen
On US labels it can be unlisted inside "fragrance"/"parfum"
Pre-2022 EU-market perfume bottles are the collectible exception, original formulas of many classics

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Frequently asked questions

Is lilial banned in Europe?

Yes, in all cosmetic products since March 1, 2022, under Commission Regulation (EU) 2021/1902, following its classification as a category 1B reproductive toxicant.

Is lilial legal in the United States?

Under FDA rules, yes, but the fragrance industry's own IFRA standards now prohibit it, so new mainstream products on both continents have dropped it.

Why were so many perfumes reformulated around 2022?

Lilial's EU ban forced every fragrance sold in Europe to remove it, and global brands rarely maintain two formulas. Changes perfume lovers noticed in old favorites frequently trace to this single regulation.

Is lilial dangerous in a perfume dose?

The 1B classification rests on fertility effects in animal studies at doses far above perfume exposure. The EU's CMR mechanism bans on hazard classification, not exposure modeling. The calibrated reading: a real hazard signal, an unquantified consumer risk, now mostly moot as industry moved on.

Related ingredients

Primary sources

Last reviewed June 10, 2026 · How we assign statuses