A New Upside for Imported Cosmetics Business: China Releases the 2022 Commodity Catalog of Import and Export Wild Fauna and Flora

Background

At present, the import and export of wild fauna and flora as well as their products in China is subject to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), Administration Regulations on the Import and Export of Endangered Wild Animals and Plants, Commodity Catalog of Import and Export Wild Fauna and Flora, the List of National Key Protected Wild Animals, the List of National Key Protected Wild Plants, etc. If the imported cosmetics contain any ingredient of endangered or protected wild fauna and flora, the enterprise should present relevant import certificates of wild fauna and flora apart from the cosmetic notification e-certificate or registration license. The import certificates of wild fauna and flora include import permits and species certificates.

^*CITES is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals through controlling the international trade. China is a member of the CITES.

^*Welcome to visit ChemLinked Cosmepedia for more details on "Regulations on Cosmetics Containing Wild Fauna and Flora in China".

New Wild Fauna and Flora Commodity Catalog

On September 6, 2022, the Endangered Species Import and Export Management Office of China and the General Administration of Customs of China jointly issued a new version of the Commodity Catalog of Import and Export Wild Fauna and Flora (“the new Catalog”) to supersede the 2018 Commodity Catalog of Import and Export Wild Fauna and Flora. (Feel free to contact ChemLinked if you need the translation service.)

The new Catalog, which was implemented on September 15, 2022, mainly consists of three parts: 1) The Catalog’s Instructions for Use; 2) A 25-page catalog of import and export wild fauna and flora, including commodities’ HS codes, names, supervision conditions, etc.; 3) Lists of endangered species, including three appendices of the CITES, the List of National Key Protected Wild Animals, and the List of National Key Protected Wild Plants.

Main Changes

Compared with the 2018 version, the new Catalog further clarifies the regulatory scope of international trade of endangered species and removes the regulatory requirements for many species previously exempted from CITES Appendices and some species included in the List of National Key Protected Wild Animals or the List of National Key Protected Wild Plants.

Specifically, those that meet one of the following five conditions will not be treated as endangered species and will not fall into the regulatory scope of the new Catalog. Enterprises can be exempted from submitting relevant import and export certificates of wild fauna and flora.

1. The import and re-export of CITES-exempted species (species not included in the CITES Appendices and species excluded from control specified in annotation)

   For example, artificially cultivated cactus fruit enjoys CITES exemptions. The import of cosmetics containing such extract was previously required the submission of a Species Certificate. But now, the certificate is no longer needed, which means enterprises can declare directly to the customs.

2. The export of CITES-exempted and non-national key protected species.

3. The import and re-export of animal and plant species not listed in CITES appendices but only with the same name as the national key protected wild animals or plants.

   When importing, if a species is not listed in CITES but originates from a foreign biological population and only has the same name as a key protected species in China, the Species Certificate is no longer required. For example, skin care products made from “India’s Glycine Soja” and “South Korea’s Nelumbo Nucifera” are this kind of species.

   Below are some other cosmetic ingredients from endangered species that have been penalized in the past for failing to provide Species Certificates. Under the new Catalog, the submission of such certificate can be exempted if the source of these ingredients meets the specified conditions.

   ◆ Ginkgo Biloba ◆ Ophiocordyceps Sinensis ◆ Houpoëa Officinalis ◆ Myristica Yunnanensis ◆ Nymphaea Candida ◆ Pinus Koraiensis

4. The export of species not listed in the CITES appendices and artificially cultivated but only with the same name as the national key protected wild animals or plants;

5. The export of species not listed in the CITES appendices and derived from artificial breeding but only with the same name as the wild population in the national key protected wild animals or plants

Notably

• In case of any inconsistency between the previous Catalog and the new Catalog, the latter shall prevail.

• The adjustment of the scope of products applicable to the Species Certificate also applies to cross-border e-commerce (CBEC). However, the species and their products subject to the CITES Import Permit are still prohibited from CBEC.

• Relevant import and export enterprises shall truthfully declare to the Customs and ensure that their imported and exported commodities do not fall within the supervision scope of the new Catalog. If the Customs has doubts about the declaration of unregulated animals, plants, and/or their products, the enterprise should provide proof materials according to the exemption conditions. Where there is still a dispute, the Customs will temporarily not release the relevant imported and exported commodities and will supervise them based on the certificates issued by the Endangered Species Import and Export Management Office.

ChemLinked Comments

In import and export trade, it is common for cosmetic commodities to be punished by the Chinese customs because of the involvement of endangered species in their ingredients without providing relevant Import Permit or Species Certificates according to law. The new Catalog implemented on September 15 has adjusted and narrowed the scope of products subject to endangered supervision certificates and relaxed the import of non-endangered species and their products from abroad. This is undoubtedly good news for enterprises, which not only relieves the work of certificates application, but also greatly facilitates customs clearance.

Chemlinked reminds companies to check whether their cosmetics contain wild animals or plants included in the new Catalog before import. If any, the application and approval should be carried out in strict accordance with the procedures stipulated by relevant laws and regulations to avoid consequences of huge costs and serious violations.

In addition, if cosmetics contain wild animals and plants components that no longer need to apply for a Species Certificate since September 15, the products’ HS code shall be re-adjusted at the time of import declaration, from the HS code of endangered supervision to the HS code of non-endangered supervision.