From the viewpoint of animal protection, safety tests of chemical substances are shifting to tests using less test animals, not giving pains to test animals and not using animals.
In the test guidelines of OECD that globally standardizes the safety tests, some tests have been revised or eliminated based on this concept.
For safety evaluation of chemical substances, an organization centered around the United Nations is promoting a globally harmonized system (GHS: Globally Harmonized System for Classification and Labeling of Chemicals), and the United Nations made recommendations in July, 2003.
In Japan, examinations and revisions have been or will be made in accordance with GHS. The original plan of GHS proposed at the United Nations in December, 2002 classifies hazards into the following nine items.

• Acute toxicity (oral, dermal and inhalation)
• Skin irritation/corrosion
• Eye irritation/corrosion
• Sensitization
• Germ cell mutagenicity
• Reproductive toxicity
• Carcinogenecity
• Specific target organ systemic toxicity: TOST
• Hazardousness to aquatic environment

• Acute Toxicity Tests
• *Acute Oral Toxicity Test
• *Acute Dermal Toxicity Test
• *Acute Inhalation Toxicity Test
• Local Irritation Tests
• *Skin Irritation Test
  *Eye Irritation Test
  *Skin Sensitization Test
• Mutagenicity Tests
• *Bacterial Reverse Mutation Test (Ames test)
  *In Vitro Mammalian Chromosome Aberration Test
  *Mammalian Erythrocyte Micronucleus Test

• Ecological Influence Tests
• *Alga Growth Inhibition Test
  *Daphnia sp. Acute Immobilization Test
  *Fish Acute Toxicity Test
  *Daphnia sp. Reproduction Test
  *Earthworm Acute Toxicity Test
  
• Repeated Dose Toxicity Tests
• *Repeated Dose 28-day Toxicity Test
  *Repeated Dose 90-day Toxicity Test