PRIA 6 Outlook: Potential Changes to U.S. EPA Pesticide Registration Fees and Review Timelines

I. PRIA 5 Is Entering Its Final Stage, Making PRIA 6 an Important Policy Milestone

PRIA was established to provide EPA with additional resources for pesticide registration and to support more predictable and efficient registration decisions.

Since its establishment, PRIA has been reauthorized four times. PRIA 5 was enacted in December 2022 and is authorized through September 30, 2027.

For conventional pesticides, common registration actions and their PRIA 5 registration fees and decision review periods include:

As PRIA 5 approaches the latter part of its authorization period, PRIA 6 will become an important policy variable, particularly with respect to registration actions, fees, and review periods.

II. Decision Review Periods: PRIA 5 Implementation May Influence Future Adjustments

Although EPA has not yet announced specific changes to registration actions or review periods under PRIA 6, EPA’s FY2024 and FY2025 PRIA Annual Reports show that actual completion times for many actions have exceeded the statutory decision review periods.

In FY2024, EPA completed 1,469 PRIA actions, of which 1,093 (74%) were completed after the statutory review period. In FY2025, EPA completed 1,731 actions, with 1,118 (65%) completed after the statutory deadline.

For conventional pesticides, antimicrobial pesticides, and biopesticides, the proportions completed after the statutory timeframe were 89%, 80%, and 62%, respectively, in FY2024, and 83%, 85%, and 62% in FY2025.

Conventional pesticide actions were particularly notable, with more than 80% completed after the statutory timeframe in both years.

For example, in FY2025, the average actual completion times for R310, R333, and R334 were approximately 2.25, 1.73, and 1.97 times their respective statutory decision review periods shown below:

These data indicate a clear gap between statutory review periods and EPA’s actual completion times. EPA is also continuing to address its PRIA backlog and improve review processes and workforce capacity.

Therefore, when establishing PRIA 6, policymakers may consider factors such as actual review times, application volumes, and available review resources. As a result, some commonly used registration actions could potentially receive longer statutory review periods under PRIA 6. For companies, this could mean a longer timeline for obtaining an EPA federal registration.

III. Registration Service Fees: October 1, 2026 Is an Important Milestone

Compared with review periods, the outlook for PRIA 5 fees is more clearly defined.

PRIA 5 provides for a first 5% fee increase and authorizes EPA to make an additional 5% adjustment under specified conditions:

• First increase: Already implemented. EPA’s current FY2025–FY2026 Fee Schedule reflects the increased fees.

• Second adjustment: EPA may increase covered registration service fees by an additional 5% for applications received on or after October 1, 2026, subject to statutory conditions and EPA’s official fee schedule.

Therefore, October 1, 2026 is an important fee-policy date for companies to monitor.

This also raises the question of whether PRIA 6 will further increase registration service fees.

PRIA fees are intended to provide EPA with additional resources to support pesticide registration activities. Given EPA’s continuing workload, backlog, and efforts to strengthen review capacity, PRIA 6 could maintain relatively increased fee levels or further increase fees for certain categories.

However, any specific PRIA 6 fees remain subject to future legislative and EPA action.

IV. What Does This Mean for Companies?

Although PRIA 6 has not yet been enacted, the implementation of PRIA 5 provides two important signals:

• First, fees may increase. PRIA 5 provides for a potential 5% fee adjustment in October 2026. PRIA 6 may maintain relatively increased fees or introduce further increases.

• Second, review periods may become longer. PRIA 5 data show that actual completion times for several common registration actions have substantially exceeded statutory review periods. EPA may therefore reassess and potentially extend certain review periods under PRIA 6.

In short, higher fees and potentially longer review periods could increase both registration costs and market-entry timelines.

For companies that are already prepared to register their products, the second half of 2026 may be an important window for initiating U.S. federal registration. Starting the process under the current PRIA framework could help reduce the uncertainty associated with future changes in registration fees and review periods.

Companies planning to enter the U.S. market should therefore closely monitor developments under PRIA 5 and PRIA 6 and incorporate potential policy changes into their registration strategy and timeline.

How REACH24H Can Help

REACH24H provides end-to-end support for companies seeking to register pesticide products with the U.S. EPA. Our services can cover :

• PRIA action assessment

• Registration strategy

• Data and dossier review

• Application preparation and submission

• Communication during EPA review

Depending on the product and registration pathway, we can also support companies with new active ingredient registration, new product registration, label and data requirement assessment, and subsequent state-level pesticide registration. By combining regulatory strategy with practical project execution, REACH24H helps applicants better manage registration timelines, documentation requirements, and evolving PRIA-related considerations.