Australian regulator proposes tighter sunscreen SPF testing after Choice found 16 of 20 failed

Left · 2Australia's medicines regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), has released proposed reforms to tighten SPF testing of sunscreens. 1 2 Left · 2The proposals follow 2025 testing by consumer group Choice, which found that 16 of 20 popular sunscreens did not meet their SPF label claims. 1 2 Left · 2One SPF 50+ product, Ultra Violette's Lean Screen Mattifying Zinc Skinscreen, returned an SPF of just four and was later recalled, followed by 19 other products sharing the same base formula; the company's co-founders apologised and offered refunds. 1 2

Left · 2Under the proposals, brands would have to test the finished product rather than just the base formula before listing it, retest periodically over its shelf life, and give results to the TGA in confidence before the product goes on sale. 1 2 Left · 2Currently makers need not give SPF data to the TGA unless asked, and the TGA said it would not routinely check the data before products reach shelves. 1 2 Left · 2The TGA considered making test results public but declined, citing confidentiality, intellectual property and the risk that technical data would be misinterpreted. 1 2

Left · 1ABC News reports the TGA would also allow "in vitro" testing on plastic plates, instead of the current required "in vivo" testing on human volunteers, because of concerns about variability in in vivo results; in vivo would not be replaced entirely, as in vitro may not suit some formulations or water-resistance testing. 1 Left · 1The TGA also proposes strengthened international accreditation of testing laboratories, which it does not currently regulate or accredit, while acknowledging this could make testing costlier and harder to access; ABC said its own investigation found more than half of the failing sunscreens had used an overseas lab whose results experts questioned. 1 Left · 2The Independent adds that the TGA wants to limit SPF claims on foundations and other cosmetics that can advertise SPF 50+ without sun protection being their main purpose, and that the TGA is still weighing changes to SPF labelling, including a "low" to "very high" format. 2 1

Left · 2TGA chief medical adviser Robyn Langham said the investigation found multiple factors that could contribute to low SPF results, not a single cause, and that the reforms aim to make SPF claims more reliable and give the TGA faster access to evidence. 1 2 Left · 1Choice's Andy Kelly welcomed the proposals, but Choice said results should be public and that the TGA should routinely monitor them and run its own compliance testing. 2 Left · 2The reforms are not yet in force: the TGA received 119 submissions in a consultation from March to May 2026, and says some changes could come in the short term while others need further consultation or legislation. 2 1

Left · 1Open questions remain: the TGA has not released the results of its investigation into the Choice findings, and it is unclear how the reforms would affect sunscreens already on sale. 1