OSHA Safety Data Sheet Requirements for Employers (2026)

Short answer: OSHA's Hazard Communication standard, 29 CFR 1910.1200, requires every employer to have a safety data sheet (SDS) for each hazardous chemical it uses, and to keep those sheets readily accessible to employees in their work areas during every shift. The sheets are not a stand-alone obligation: they feed your written program's chemical list and your employee training, and exposure records built on them are kept for 30 years.

Here is each requirement in the order an inspector would check it, with the paragraph of the standard it comes from and a link to the detailed guide for that piece.

The requirements at a glance

• Coverage — a safety data sheet for each hazardous chemical you use (1910.1200(g)(1)).
• Content — the sheet is in English and follows the 16-section format (1910.1200(g)(2)).
• Access — copies readily accessible in the work area during each work shift; electronic access allowed with no barriers (1910.1200(g)(8)).
• Program — your written hazard communication program lists the chemicals by the product identifier on each SDS (1910.1200(e)(1)).
• Training — employees are told where the sheets are and how to use them (1910.1200(h)).
• Records — where employees were exposed, the chemical's identity and where and when it was used are kept for 30 years (1910.1020).

1. A sheet for every hazardous chemical you use

Paragraph (g)(1) puts the first duty on the supply chain and the second on you: chemical manufacturers and importers must obtain or develop a safety data sheet for each hazardous chemical they produce or import, and employers shall have a safety data sheet in the workplace for each hazardous chemical which they use.

Manufacturers, importers and distributors must send the sheet to downstream employers with the initial shipment and with the first shipment after it is updated (1910.1200(g)(6) for manufacturers and importers, (g)(7) for distributors). When one does not arrive, the gap is still yours to close — see what to do when a manufacturer will not send an SDS. The practical starting point is a complete list of what is on site: how to build a chemical inventory from scratch.

Not everything with a label needs a sheet. Consumer products used in the same way, duration and frequency as a consumer would use them are exempt — the details and the limits are in the consumer product exemption.

2. What the sheet must contain

Paragraph (g)(2) requires the sheet to be in English (you may keep copies in other languages as well) and to present its information under 16 headings in a fixed order — identification, hazards, composition, first aid and so on through to other information. The sections are explained one by one in the 16 sections of an SDS. If your binder still holds older-format material safety data sheets, see SDS vs MSDS; and on whether a sheet goes out of date, do safety data sheets expire?

3. Readily accessible, every shift, in the work area

This is the core storage rule, 1910.1200(g)(8):

“The employer shall maintain in the workplace copies of the required safety data sheets for each hazardous chemical, and shall ensure that they are readily accessible during each work shift to employees when they are in their work area(s). (Electronic access and other alternatives to maintaining paper copies of the safety data sheets are permitted as long as no barriers to immediate employee access in each workplace are created by such options.)”

A paper binder meets it; so can a phone or tablet — but only if nothing stands between a worker and the sheet when they need it. Where employees travel between sites during a shift, the sheets may stay at the primary facility as long as employees can immediately obtain the information in an emergency ((g)(9)), and sheets may be kept in any form, including as operating procedures ((g)(10)). The four tests any system has to pass are set out in does OSHA require SDS software?

4. Tie the sheets to your written program

The written hazard communication program required by paragraph (e) must include a list of the hazardous chemicals known to be present, using a product identifier that is referenced on the appropriate safety data sheet (1910.1200(e)(1)). That link is why the list and the binder have to match: a chemical on the shelf that is not on the list, or a list entry with no sheet, is a gap in both places. What the program must contain is covered in written hazard communication program requirements.

5. Train employees on where the sheets are

Paragraph (h) requires information and training at the time of an employee's initial assignment and whenever a new chemical hazard is introduced into their work area. Part of that information is the location and availability of the written program, the chemical list and the safety data sheets, and training must cover how employees can obtain and use the label and SDS information. The full list is in HazCom training requirements; labels are covered in GHS label requirements and secondary container labeling.

6. How long to keep them

1910.1200 itself sets no retention period for a sheet you are still using. The 30-year obligation comes from the access to exposure and medical records rule, 29 CFR 1910.1020: where employees were exposed, a record of the chemical's identity, and where and when it was used, must be kept for 30 years. Keeping the superseded sheet is the simplest way to satisfy it — the detail is in how long you must keep safety data sheets.

7. What happens if the sheets are missing

OSHA's maximum penalty for a serious violation in 2026 is $16,550 per violation. The citations themselves tell a more useful story: across the 138 federal HazCom citations in our citation tracker (OSHA enforcement records, January 2025 to March 2026; checked Oct 2026), paragraph (g) — safety data sheets — accounts for 26, about one in five, while the written program and training account for most of the rest. See the most-cited HazCom violations and what a HazCom violation actually costs.

Frequently asked questions

What does OSHA require for safety data sheets?

Under 29 CFR 1910.1200(g), employers must have a safety data sheet in the workplace for each hazardous chemical they use, and keep copies readily accessible to employees in their work areas during each work shift. The sheets also connect to the rest of the standard: the chemical list in your written program uses the product identifiers on the SDS, and employee training must cover where the sheets are kept.

Who is responsible for providing safety data sheets?

Chemical manufacturers and importers must obtain or develop a safety data sheet for each hazardous chemical they produce or import, and manufacturers, importers and distributors must provide one to downstream employers with the initial shipment and with the first shipment after the sheet is updated. The employer's duty is to have and maintain a sheet for each hazardous chemical it uses.

Can safety data sheets be kept electronically?

Yes. 1910.1200(g)(8) permits electronic access and other alternatives to paper copies as long as no barriers to immediate employee access in each workplace are created by such options.

How long do you have to keep safety data sheets?

The Hazard Communication standard sets no fixed period for current sheets, but where employees were exposed, 29 CFR 1910.1020 requires a record of the chemical's identity, and where and when it was used, to be kept for 30 years. Keeping the old SDS is the simplest way to meet that.

What is the penalty for missing safety data sheets?

OSHA's maximum penalty for a serious violation in 2026 is $16,550 per violation. In practice most HazCom citations in our tracker carried far less or no money, and safety data sheet citations (paragraph (g)) were about one in five of them.

This guide summarises 29 CFR 1910.1200 and 1910.1020 for general information and is not legal advice. State-plan states can have additional requirements.

Related guides

• Does OSHA require SDS software?
• How long you must keep safety data sheets
• The 16 sections of an SDS explained
• Written hazard communication program requirements
• HazCom training requirements
• When a manufacturer will not send you an SDS
• Where to Keep SDS at Work, and How Many Binders You Need
• How to Get SDS Sheets for the Products You Buy
• Does HazCom Apply to Small Businesses? The 10-Employee Myth
• What an OSHA Inspector Checks for HazCom, and How to Prepare