Compliance date
The date by which regulated parties must comply with a final rule.
What it is
The compliance date of a final rule is the date by which regulated employers, manufacturers, or other parties must actually be in compliance with the rule’s substantive requirements.
Plain-English explanation
Compliance dates are typically set in the future relative to the effective date, giving regulated parties time to update programs, retrain workers, or upgrade equipment.
Many rules have multiple compliance dates, one for substance evaluation, one for SDS distribution, one for training. The HazCom 2024 update is a clear example: tiered compliance dates spread over multiple years.
Why it matters
An OSHA inspector visiting your facility on the day of a compliance date expects you to be in compliance. Not three weeks later. Compliance dates are firm.