China Cosmetic Regulatory Updates | March 2022
China NMPA Approves One New Cosmetic Ingredient
In March 2022, China National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) updated the notification information of one new cosmetic ingredient (NCI).
The basic information of the new NCI is as follows:
| INCI Name | Chenopodium formosanum Extract |
| CAS Number | / |
| Purpose of Use | Skin protectant |
| Applicable Scope | All kinds of cosmetics |
| The Maximum Concentration | ≤0.7% |
| Notifier | Baiyuet Biotechnology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. |
Children Cosmetics Logo is Not a Product Quality Certification Mark
On March 7, China NMPA released a popular science article to help consumers correctly understand the meaning of the children cosmetic logo, Little Golden Shield.
“Little Golden Shield” is a symbol that distinguishes children cosmetics from adult cosmetics, disinfection products, and toys. From May 1, 2022, children cosmetics that apply for registration/notification must be labeled with the logo. For those that applied for registration/notification before May 1, 2022, the registrant/notifier shall update the label before May 1, 2023. Non-children cosmetics shall not be labeled with this logo.
Labeling “Little Golden Shield” on the cosmetic packaging only indicates that the product belongs to children cosmetics, but does not mean that the product has been approved by the regulatory authorities or certified for quality and safety.
“Little Golden Shield”
ChemLinked will host a webinar on China’s new cosmetic labeling requirements on April 26. Welcome to register here.
China NMPA Answers Key Questions on Cosmetic Supervision and Administration
On March 10, China NMPA issued an announcement, answering frequently asked questions about ingredient safety information, efficacy claim evaluation and sample retention. The key points include:
| Ingredient Safety Information |
|
| Efficacy Claim Evaluation | For cosmetics that have been registered and notified before May 1, 2021, cosmetic registrants and notifiers should upload the abstract of the efficacy claim’s basis of relevant products in accordance with the transitional policies. After registrants and notifiers evaluate the efficacy claim of the relevant products as required by Standards for Cosmetic Efficacy Claim Evaluation, if the efficacy claim involved in the product name or label cannot be supported by the evaluation result, a change application should be filed before the expiry of the transitional period. In the application, the registrants and notifiers shall adjust the classification code of the product based on its actual properties, and amend the relevant content in the product name or label, to make it comply with regulations. |
| Sample Retention |
|
China NIFDC Consults on the Limitation of Benzene in Cosmetics
To strengthen the management of safety risk substances in cosmetics, on March 10, 2022, China National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC) released an announcement seeking public comments on the limitation requirements of benzene (CAS No. 71-43-2). According to the risk assessment results, the limit of benzene in cosmetics is proposed to be 2mg/kg.
Shanghai Songjiang District Administration for Market Regulation Issues the First Penalty for General Cosmetics Containing Whitening Ingredient SymWhite 377
On November 30, 2021, China NMPA announced that the addition of whitening ingredient SymWhite 377 in general cosmetics is illegal, and shall be investigated and dealt with by the provincial regulatory authorities. On March 14, 2022, Shanghai Songjiang District Administration for Market Regulation issued an administrative penalty decision. A company was fined 30,000 yuan because the claims of “SymWhite 377” and “whitening” appeared in the advertising of the company’s general cosmetics. It claimed the efficacy that the product did not have, which constituted the act of publishing false advertising. This is the first public penalty case related to products containing SymWhite 377. The notification of the above products has been canceled.
China NMPA to Set Up a Cosmetic Technical Specification Committee
On March 15, China NMPA issued a notice to select members of the Cosmetic Technical Specification Committee publicly. In order to implement Cosmetics Supervision and Administration Regulation and further improve the formulation and revision of cosmetic technical specifications, NMPA will establish a Cosmetic Technical Specification Committee, and the selection of the committee members are now open to the public. The selection scope includes cosmetic supervision departments, scientific research institutions, colleges and universities, cosmetic testing institutions, drug testing institutions, toothpaste testing institutions, and hospitals. The target candidates are technical experts who have professional backgrounds in cosmetic science, fine chemicals, analytical chemistry, microbiology, toxicology, medicine, pharmacy, public health, or biotechnology and have worked in the cosmetic or toothpaste industry.
Guangzhou Government Reminds Cosmetic Notifiers to Complete the Annual Report, Product Confirmation and Document Supplement
On March 16, Guangzhou Administration for Market Regulation issued an announcement reminding general cosmetic notifiers to complete the product confirmation and annual report before March 31, and supplement the notification documents (e.g., product classification code, executive standard, label samples, product formula) before May 1.
46 Cosmetic Inspection and Testing Institutions Were Suspended from Using Testing Information System
On March 18, China NMPA issued a notice on the disposal for the inspection and testing institutions for cosmetic registration and notification according to their capacity evaluation results. The capacity assessment results and disposal measures are as follows:
| Capacity Evaluation Results | Disposal Measures |
| 6 inspection and testing institutions did not participate in the capacity evaluation without special reasons | Suspend the use permission for the cosmetic registration and notification testing information system, and require them to take corrective and rectification measures. |
| 40 inspection and testing institutions’capacity evaluation results failed to meet the requirements | |
| Some of the capacity evaluation items of 12 inspection and testing institutions have doubtful results | Require them to conduct self-inspection, and take rectification and preventive measures. |
The capacity evaluation’s unqualified, unsatisfactory or doubtful items are related to “thermotolerant coliforms” and “cadmium.” From this evaluation, it can be seen that NMPA is strengthening the supervision for inspection and testing institutions.
China NMPA Releases the 2021 National Cosmetics Supervision and Sampling Annual Report
On March 21, China NMPA released the 2021 National Cosmetics Supervision and Sampling Annual Report. In 2021, NMPA took risk-prone cosmetic types and places as the key sampling objects, and organized sampling testing for 11 cosmetic types including hair dyeing products, hair shampoos and conditioners, make-up products, sunscreens, products claimed to remove acne, facial masks, general skin care products claimed to moisturize & moisten, general skin care products claimed to tighten and anti-wrinkle, children cosmetic products, freckle-removing/whitening products and talcum powders, totaling 20,245 batches. 33 cosmetic inspection and testing institutions tested these products in accordance with Safety and Technical Standards for Cosmetics 2015, of which 19,847 batches of products met the standards, with a pass rate of 98.03%. Among the 11 types of cosmetics involved in the sampling test, the pass rate of 9 types, including talcum powder and freckle/whitening cosmetics, reached more than 98%.
China Customs Cracks Down on Cross-border Ecommerce Tax Evasion
On March 22, Yiwu Customs issued an administrative penalty decision. The reason for the penalty was the omission of the CBEC consumption tax. When the company imported cosmetics through CBEC, it declared the gross weight of the product as the first legal quantity to the customs. In this way, the unit price per gram of this cosmetic was lowered below the cosmetic consumption tax threshold, resulting in the omission of consumption tax. The company was fined 800,000 yuan. Customs departments across China are cracking down on the illegal act of evading tax by concealing the name, quantity, and amount of the imported goods.
A Company Legal Person in Guangdong was Banned from Engaging in Cosmetic Production and Operation Activities for 10 Years
On March 25, Guangdong MPA issued an administrative penalty decision. The reasons for the penalty were:
- The company’s products were found to contain salicylic acid, an ingredient neither marked on the label nor in the notification dossiers;
- The pH value of the product did not meet the requirements in the executive standard (QB/T2660-2004);
- In Xinjiang, there were reports of adverse reactions caused by the use of the product;
- During the investigation of the case, the company’s legal person provided false evidence and obstructed the investigation.
The company was fined 40,000 yuan, and the legal person was imposed a 10-year ban on cosmetic production and operation activities. This is the second case of a ban on the legal person to engage in the cosmetic industry after CSAR implementation.
China NMPA Starts Using the Special Seal for Cosmetics Inspection and Sampling
On March 24, 2022, China NMPA issued an announcement stating that from April 1, 2022, NMPA started using the “Special Seal of National Medical Products Administration for Cosmetic Inspection and Sampling.”
Special Seal of National Medical Products Administration for Cosmetic Inspection and Sampling
China NMPA Consults on the Inspection Points and Judgment Principles of Cosmetic Good Manufacturing Practices
On January 7, 2022, China NMPA issued the finalized Good Manufacturing Practices for Cosmetics and will implement it on July 1, 2022. Cosmetics registrants, notifiers, and entrusted production enterprises shall organize the cosmetic production in accordance with the Practices. Following that, on March 30, 2022, NMPA released the draft of Inspection Points and Judgment Principles of Cosmetic Good Manufacturing Practices for public consultation. Regulatory authorities across China will use the Points as a basis to determine whether the enterprise complies with GMP. Any suggestions about the Points can be mailed to NMPA (hzpjgc@nmpa.gov.cn) before April 20, 2022.
China NIFDC Consults on Safety and Technical Standards for Cosmetics 2022
On March 31, 2022, China NIFDC released a draft of the Safety and Technical Standard for Cosmetics 2022 (STSC 2022) for public consultation. The consultation will end on April 30, 2022.
Compared with the 2015 version, the framework of the 2022 version remains basically unchanged. The draft STSC 2022 revises the content that is not suitable for the current supervision practice, retains the content that still applies, incorporates the previous approved revisions for STSC 2015 (they were issued as notifications), as well as standardizes and improves some terms and expressions.
Guangdong MPA Issues a Notice on Matters Related to General Cosmetics Annual Report
Notifiers shall submit the annual report of general cosmetics notified over one year through the new platform. The annual report’s submission period lasts from January 1 to March 31 of each year. Recently, Guangdong MPA issued a notice stating that for general cosmetics failed to submit the annual report before March 31, 2022, the local municipal MPA will issue a rectification opinion and urge the notifier to submit the annual report before June 30, 2022. If the rectification is not completed as required within the time limit, the notification of the product will be forcibly canceled.
A Beauty Collection Store was Fined and Confiscated 887,000 Yuan for Operating Cosmetic Samples with Non-compliant Labels
Recently, a well-known beauty collection store was fined and confiscated 887,000 yuan for selling cosmetic samples with non-compliant labels. The labels of these small samples lack the full ingredient list, production batch number, or notification number of imported cosmetics, which violates paragraph 1 of Article 35 of CSAR, “The minimum sales unit of cosmetics shall be labeled, which shall comply with relevant laws, administrative regulations and mandatory national standards, and the content therein shall be authentic, complete and correct.”
The fine is a huge amount in the industry. It can be seen that the cosmetics sample business has aroused the attention of the regulatory authorities, and the supervision for the sample sales will be gradually tightened.
China Issues Eleven Group Standards in March
China issued eleven group standards in March. The basic information is as follows:
| Type | Release Date | Initiator | Group Standard | Implementation Date / Deadline for Comments |
| To be effective | March 25, 2022 | Zhejiang Provincial Brand Construction Association | T/ZZB 2632—2022 Cosmetic Grade White Oil | April 25, 2022 |
| March 28, 2022 | T/ZZB 2708—2022 Glass Bottles for Cosmetic Packaging | April 28, 2022 | ||
| March 28, 2022 | T/ZZB 2717—2022 Soothing and Moisturizing Lotion | April 28, 2022 | ||
| Draft | March 23, 2022 | Shanghai Daily Chemistry Trade Association | T/SHRH041-2022 Guidelines on Technical Definitions and Calculation of Natural Ingredients in Cosmetics | April 10, 2022 |
| March 25, 2022 | Guangdong Cosmetics Association | Test Method for Efficacy Measurement of Anti-dandruff Cosmetic Products | April 22, 2022 | |
| March 28, 2022 | China Association of Fragrance Flavour and Cosmetic Industries | Linalool Compound Spice | April 27, 2022 | |
| Tetrahydrogeraniol Compound Spice | ||||
| Ionone Compound Spice | ||||
| Citral Compound Spice | ||||
| Methyl Dihydrojasmonate Compound Spice | ||||
| Citronella Compound Spice |
Beijing, Guangzhou and Zhejiang Regulatory Authorities Publish Frequently Asked Questions Regarding General Cosmetics Notification
In March, Beijing Municipal and Zhejiang Medical Products Administration (MPA), and Guangzhou Administration for Market Regulation issued four batches of frequently asked questions, which pertain to the general cosmetics notification under China’s new cosmetic regulations.
| Release Date | Regulatory Authority | Batch |
| March 14, 2022 | Beijing Municipal Medical Products Administration | The 6th Batch |
| March 18, 2022 | Guangzhou Administration for Market Regulation | The 21st Batch |
| March 25, 2022 | The 22nd Batch | |
| March 29, 2022 | Zhejiang Medical Products Administration | The 1st Batch |
Reference Link: ChemLinked
