Source: https://reeflabel.com/ingredients/dioxybenzone/ Chemical (organic) UV filter · Reef research: Limited data # Dioxybenzone A benzophenone-family filter rarely used today. Banned in - Palau Also excluded where only mineral sunscreen is allowed - Maui County - Hawaiʻi County ## Where it’s restricted Named in the law or guidance | Location | Status | Since | | --- | --- | --- | | [Palau](https://reeflabel.com/locations/palau/) [law text ↗](https://www.palaugov.pw/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/RPPL-No.-10-30-re.-The-Responsible-Tourism-Education-Act-of-2018.pdf) | In force | January 1, 2020 | ### Also not allowed under mineral-only rules Dioxybenzone isn’t named in these laws, but they allow only mineral (zinc oxide or titanium dioxide) sunscreens, so a product containing it is excluded anyway. - [Maui County (Maui, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi)](https://reeflabel.com/locations/maui-county/) (in force since October 1, 2022) - [Hawaiʻi County (Big Island)](https://reeflabel.com/locations/hawaii-county/) (in force since December 1, 2022) ## Why it’s regulated FDA's 2019 proposed rule placed dioxybenzone in Category III because the public record lacks sufficient data to support a positive GRASE determination. ## What the reef research says He et al. (2019) tested dioxybenzone (BP-8) on larvae and adults of two coral species at 0.1 to 1000 μg/L. BP-1 and dioxybenzone caused settlement failure, bleaching and mortality in Seriatopora caliendrum larvae at a lowest observed effect concentration of 10 μg/L or more, and no compound affected Pocillopora damicornis larvae. Overall, BP-1 and BP-8 were more toxic to both species than oxybenzone (BP-3) and sulisobenzone (BP-4), and the toxicity ranking matched bioaccumulation, with BP-8 highest. The coral tests used two species. Sources (4) - [He et al. 2019, Science of the Total Environment 651:2391-2399 (doi 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.10.148), PubMed record](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30336428/) - [FDA, Sunscreen Drug Products for Over-the-Counter Human Use (proposed rule, Federal Register, 2019)](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/full_text/html/2019/02/26/2019-03019.html) - [FDA: Questions and answers on FDA's regulatory actions on over-the-counter sunscreen (content current as of 10 Sept 2026)](https://www.fda.gov/drugs/understanding-over-counter-medicines/questions-and-answers-fdas-regulatory-actions-over-counter-sunscreen) - [21 CFR 352.10, Sunscreen active ingredients (eCFR; ensulizole, meradimate, octinoxate and octisalate appear under their revised names in the stayed 2002 amendment)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-352.10) **Related ingredients:** [Oxybenzone](https://reeflabel.com/ingredients/oxybenzone/), [Sulisobenzone](https://reeflabel.com/ingredients/sulisobenzone/) Last reviewed October 14, 2026. ### Label names we match - dioxybenzone - benzophenone-8 - benzophenone 8 ### Regulatory status **Wikidata:** [Q2533641](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2533641) **US FDA:** Insufficient data: not GRASE under FDA's 2019 proposal, restated in its 2021 proposed order (OTC000008), until more safety data are submitted. Still a proposal as of September 2026. Max 3% in the US. **EU:** Not approved. **Protects against:** UVB and UVA-II.