Legislation & Guidelines

What are the cosmetic regulations?

Labelling requirements regarding to:

• Corporate name, Country of origin (for a product outside the EU)
• Minimum durability (by a symbol or best before date)
• The batch number of manufacturer or the reference for identifying the cosmetic product.
• Required precautionary information, precaution symbols, list of ingredients.

Can be found in Article 4 of the Commodities Decree on cosmetic products.

Safety file requirements for cosmetic products:

• Composition of the product
• Purity of ingredients
• Microbiological specifications
• Safety assessment
• Justification of a cosmetic claim (example: “anti-wrinkle”)

Can be found in Article 6 of the Commodities Decree on cosmetic products.

Notification:

Before a company can manufacture a cosmetic product in the EU or if you are the first to import it into the European Union, you must send a notification to the European Commission via the Cosmetic Product Notification Portal (CPNP).

Companies who sent a notification earlier to the Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority, must one-time notify their products again before 11 Juli 2013 via the CPNP.

GMP:

The Cosmetics Regulation (EC) 1223/2009 requires that all cosmetic products placed on the European market comply with Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) set by the ISO 22716 standard.

Many importers require a GMP Certificate or certificate of their manufacturer or third party before they will import products.

New European Legislation:

Please note: As of July 11, 2013, the Cosmetics Regulation (EC) No. 1223/2009 applies. This is the most important legislation for cosmetic products within the EU and it is regularly updated based on new scientific insights.

The official, consolidated text of the regulation (including the most recent amendments) can be consulted via the EUR-Lex website.

Entering the European market for soap: cbi.eu

Information: NCV – NVWA

Safety files and tests: SkinConsult BV

Product Analysis: Balis Micro BV / Balis Laboratorium BV

Private Label Cosmetics & Medical Devices: Cosmade Belgium