What Is Kojic Acid?
Kojic acid is used in cosmetics as a skin lightening, whitening or depigmenting agent, the European Commission says.
The EU Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS), in an opinion adopted in March 2022, considered concerns about potential endocrine disrupting properties and concluded kojic acid is safe as a skin lightening agent in cosmetics at concentrations of up to 1 percent. The same opinion reports that its predecessor committee found kojic acid to be a sensitizer in guinea pigs and humans, cites a case of allergic contact dermatitis and hyperpigmented lesions in a 54-year-old woman after long-term use of a depigmenting cream, and notes that because kojic acid is sometimes added to peeling agents, a weakened skin barrier may be of additional concern because of greater absorption.
The EU then wrote the limit into law. Commission Regulation (EU) 2024/996 restricts kojic acid to use as a skin lightening agent in face and hand products at no more than 1 percent, and non-complying products may not be placed on the EU market from February 1, 2025 or made available there from November 1, 2025.
Sources checked September 15, 2026. Every point below links the page it came from.
The sources behind this answer
- Regulatory filingThe European Commission says kojic acid is used in cosmetic products as a skin lightening agent, a whitening agent or a depigmenting agent. European Commission, Regulation (EU) 2024/996, via web.archive.org ↗
- Government sourceIn a March 2022 opinion, the SCCS said that, considering concerns about potential endocrine disrupting properties, kojic acid is safe as a skin lightening agent in cosmetic products at concentrations of up to 1 percent. EU Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety ↗
- Regulatory filingRegulation (EU) 2024/996 restricts kojic acid to skin lightening use in face and hand products at up to 1 percent, with non-complying products barred from the EU market from February 1, 2025 and from sale from November 1, 2025. European Commission, Regulation (EU) 2024/996, via web.archive.org ↗
- StudyThe SCCS opinion reports that its predecessor committee concluded kojic acid was found to be a sensitizer in guinea pigs and humans. EU Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety ↗
- StudyThe SCCS opinion cites a case report of a 54-year-old woman who developed allergic contact dermatitis and hyperpigmented lesions after chronic use of a depigmenting cream, with patch testing positive to kojic acid at 1 percent. EU Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety ↗
- Government sourceThe SCCS notes that kojic acid is sometimes added to peeling agents, and that a weakened skin barrier may be of additional concern because of greater dermal absorption. EU Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety ↗
Sources checked September 15, 2026. A brand statement is the company’s own claim, which we report but have not verified. Our grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests.