Is R1234yf being banned? PFAS and the future of car air con

You may have read online that R1234yf, the refrigerant in most modern car air con systems, is about to be banned in Europe. That is not correct. Here you can read what the European Union is actually planning for PFAS, why R1234yf falls under it, when a decision is expected and what it means for your car today.

By the team at Autobedrijf Willemsbrug, RDW-approved APK (MOT) test station since 1979 · Updated 4 November 2026

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The short answer

No, not now. In November 2026 R1234yf is allowed throughout the European Union, in new cars and in cars already on the road. R1234yf does fall under the broad PFAS definition in a European proposal to restrict PFAS. The final opinion of the ECHA committee SEAC is expected at the end of 2026, and a decision will come in 2027 at the earliest, followed by a transition period of at least 18 months. For your car nothing changes now: a certified garage may service, repair and refill your air con with R1234yf.

Air con service at Autobedrijf Willemsbrug: from € 120 (R134a) or € 180 (R1234yf), ready in 45 to 60 minutes. You can wait for it, on Saturdays too. You can also drop in if we have room: call +31 10 479 00 00 to check. For repairs, we tell you the price in advance. Our team speaks English. More about our air con service

Is R1234yf banned now?

No. In November 2026 there is no European ban on R1234yf in force. R1234yf is allowed in new cars and in cars that are already on the road. A garage with an F-gas certificate may service, repair and refill the air con with R1234yf.

What is happening is a proposal to restrict a large group of substances across the EU: PFAS. Five European countries, including the Netherlands, submitted the proposal to the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). Two scientific committees at ECHA give their opinion on it. After that, the European Commission and the member states decide. That decision has not been made yet.

Be careful with headlines about a ban. A committee opinion is not a law. Until the European Commission and the member states have decided, the rules for your air con stay the same. And if a restriction does come, the proposal includes a transition period first.

What is PFAS and why does R1234yf count as one?

PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are substances in which carbon and fluorine are very strongly bonded. Because of that, they hardly break down in nature. That is why they are often called ‘forever chemicals’.

The European proposal uses a broad definition. Any substance with at least one fully fluorinated carbon atom in the form CF3 or CF2 is included. According to the law firm White & Case, the scope covers more than 10,000 substances. ECHA’s Committee for Risk Assessment (RAC) also keeps volatile PFAS, and fluorinated gases in particular, within the proposal.

R1234yf has the formula CF3CF=CH2. It contains a CF3 group, so it falls under the definition, as does the older refrigerant R134a. In our article R134a or R1234yf: which refrigerant does your car use? you can read how to find out which gas is in your air con.

What is TFA and why is it the real concern?

The concern is mainly about what is left of R1234yf once it escapes into the air. R1234yf breaks down in the atmosphere, but this produces trifluoroacetic acid, or TFA. TFA is itself a PFAS and does not break down any further in nature.

  • More TFA than R134a. According to the German Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt, UBA), R1234yf forms about five times more TFA than R134a.
  • In rain and groundwater. The UBA writes that TFA is highly mobile and gets into groundwater and drinking water. According to the UBA, there is no practical way to remove TFA from the water cycle, not even in drinking water treatment.
  • Stricter classification. In June 2026 ECHA’s RAC recommended classifying TFA as toxic for reproduction (category 1B) and as very persistent and very mobile (vPvM). That opinion is now with the European Commission.

For you as a driver, this mainly means one thing: the less refrigerant leaks out, the better. Having a leak in your air con repaired is good for the cooling and good for the environment.

When will the EU decide on PFAS?

The final opinion of the second committee (SEAC, the Committee for Socio-economic Analysis) is expected at the end of 2026. After that, the European Commission makes a proposal and the member states vote in the REACH Committee. A decision will therefore come in 2027 at the earliest.

When What
January 2023 Five European countries, including the Netherlands, submit the proposal to ECHA
2 March 2026 Final opinion of the Committee for Risk Assessment (RAC)
26 March to 25 May 2026 Public consultation on the draft opinion of the Committee for Socio-economic Analysis (SEAC)
End of 2026 (expected) Final opinion of SEAC
After that Proposal from the European Commission and vote in the REACH Committee
2027 at the earliest Decision. After that, according to the proposal, a general transition period of 18 months, with an extra 5 or 12 years for some uses

Sources: White & Case (13 April 2026) and EFCTC (22 May 2026). Situation in November 2026.

Nothing has been decided yet for car air con. In its draft opinion, SEAC said it could not reach a conclusion on exemptions for certain refrigerants in vehicle air conditioning and vehicle heat pumps, because data was missing. So it is not yet known what a rule for cars would look like.

What does the PFAS proposal mean for your car now?

For your car nothing changes now. You do not need to convert anything, report anything or have anything adjusted.

Question Situation in November 2026
Can I keep driving with an air con that uses R1234yf? Yes
May a garage service and refill the air con with R1234yf? Yes, with an F-gas certificate or training attestation
Can I buy a new or used car with R1234yf? Yes
Do I need to convert the air con to another refrigerant? No
May I top it up myself with a can? No, the F-gas rules already forbid that

Converting an existing car to another refrigerant is not a realistic option either. According to the summary of the SEAC draft by the industry body EFCTC, switching requires a redesign of the refrigerant circuit. SEAC says that is only economically feasible at the start of a new car model.

Is your air con leaking? Then a garage is not allowed to refill it without repairing the leak first. Why topping up yourself is not an option either is explained in DIY car air con recharge kits: are they allowed?

Is R1234yf toxic or dangerous?

R1234yf is in safety class A2L. The A stands for lower toxicity, the 2L for mildly flammable. According to the 2014 report of the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC), its auto-ignition temperature is 405 °C.

In a fire, R1234yf can break down into hydrogen fluoride (HF), a toxic and corrosive gas. This led to a lot of debate in 2013 and 2014. The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) concluded that there is no evidence of a serious risk under normal and foreseeable conditions of use. The UBA disagreed in 2014 and pointed to tests in which the gas ignited and HF was formed.

In practice this means: only let a technician with the right training and the right equipment work on the air con. If you notice a sharp smell after a collision, or smoke under the bonnet, get out of the car and stay away from the smoke.

Is R744 (CO2) the alternative?

R744 is carbon dioxide (CO2) used as a refrigerant. It is not a PFAS and does not form TFA. Some cars already use it, including certain versions of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and E-Class, the Audi A8, the Audi Q4 e-tron with heat pump and electric Volkswagens from the ID range with a heat pump.

An R744 air con works at much higher pressures than an R1234yf system. It needs its own parts, its own equipment and its own training. We do not fill R744. Does your car use R744, or are you not sure? Then call us first with your registration number on +31 10 479 00 00. We will tell you what we can do for your air con.

How do we handle R1234yf in our workshop?

We hold an F-gas certificate for R134a and R1234yf. During every air con service, the service machine extracts the old refrigerant and collects it. None of it goes into the air. We then put the system under vacuum: this removes moisture and shows us whether the system is sealed.

If the system is not sealed, we do not refill it. We find the leak first, and we tell you the cost of the repair in advance. We only carry out repairs once you have agreed. If the system is sealed, we fill it with the weight of refrigerant the manufacturer specifies. What happens during a service is explained on our page car air conditioning service in Rotterdam.

Frequently asked questions

Is R134a also covered by the PFAS rules?

Yes. R134a also has a CF3 group, so it falls under the same broad definition. It also forms TFA in the air, but according to the UBA about five times less than R1234yf. R134a may only be used to refill cars that already use it.

Can I have R134a put into a car that uses R1234yf?

No. An air con may only be filled with the refrigerant it was designed for. The sticker under the bonnet shows which gas that is.

Will an R1234yf air con service become more expensive because of the PFAS proposal?

No, not because of the proposal itself. There is no decision yet, so the rules do not change now. Nobody can say today what will happen to refrigerant prices later.

Does R1234yf damage the ozone layer?

No. R1234yf does not deplete the ozone layer: it has an ozone depletion potential (ODP) of 0. The issue with R1234yf is not the ozone layer but its breakdown product, TFA.

Can I have my air con converted to R744?

No. An R744 system works at much higher pressures and needs different parts. According to SEAC, switching requires a redesign of the refrigerant circuit. That is only possible with a new car model.

When will there be more news about a possible restriction?

SEAC’s final opinion is expected at the end of 2026. After that, the European Commission makes a proposal. We will update this article as soon as there is news that changes something for your car.

Does it matter if my air con is losing R1234yf?

Yes. With too little refrigerant the air con cools less and the compressor gets less lubrication. It also matters for the environment, because TFA is formed. So have a leak repaired before the air con is refilled.

Not sure which refrigerant your car uses?

Call us with your registration number on +31 10 479 00 00. We will tell you which refrigerant is in your air con and what an air con service costs for your car.

You will find us at Boterdiep 11 in Rotterdam-IJsselmonde, close to Stadion Feijenoord (De Kuip). We work by appointment. For a quick question or check you can walk in without an appointment.

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