Permission and License Required for Import of Cosmetics in India

The cosmetics sector stands among the most prominent and successful business capacitors in the Indian market. It is a known fact that the demand for cosmetics is increasing day by day at unprecedented rates. But with increasing demands and increasing imports of premium cosmetics, there arises an urgent necessity to regulate this influx of products properly. Hence there are several permissions and licenses required to import cosmetics in India.

There is a huge variety of cosmetic products such as lipsticks, skin whitening creams, mascara, kajal, etc. Most consumers are concerned about whether the products are free of chemicals or not. A large number of cosmetics contain animal fat that is quite unsafe for human skin. This has led the government to take some initiative for consumers and make sure the quality of cosmetics being imported into the country is optimum and safe to use.

With the prospect of increasing awareness among consumers and importers, the government of India formulated variously policies as well as regulations which ensure that all cosmetic products are well tested by various labs and are free of harmful chemicals.

Let's see some of the important regulations for cosmetic products by CDSCO:

The manufacturer or the brand owner has to submit a self- declaration that the products have not been tested on any animals along with other documents. Moreover, they are also required to submit the acknowledgment received from CDSCO.

●       A letter of authorization is required if a third party is manufacturing products outside India. The overseas manufacturer should sign an authorization letter to the owner of the brand and authorize him. This is like the power of attorney.

●       If there is an import of cosmetics in bulk, then the applicant has to obtain a free sale certificate as well as bulk importer. He should get the customs clearance approval after testing of cosmetics business sale.

●       The licenses needed for cosmetics import in India.

●       License for sale or manufacture of cosmetics.

●       License for renewal or approval for carrying out tests on drugs.

Every cosmetic product which also includes the imported products intended for sale in India should be registered under Drug & Cosmetics Rules, 1945.

For cosmetic business license, some of the important documents needed are Certificate of Free Sale, marketing authorization letter, Required fees, a Self-declaration mentioning that there is no alteration in the information shared before, a valid NOC from PCB, laboratory equipment list, and manufacturer subsidiary.

The process might seem tedious and confusing. Hence it is advised to take the help of a seasoned Cosmetic Registration India consultant.