Cosmetics Registration in Vietnam

According to data from the National Trade Center (ITC) and the World Bank (WB), Vietnam’s imports of cosmetic products have risen to US$1.1 billion in 2016, double that of 2011. The value is forecasted to reach US$2.2 billion by 2020. What is more, Vietnam has signed several trade agreements which will reduce tariffs on imports down to between 0-5% which will help spur growth in the sector. The most imported cosmetic products are perfumes (55%), make-up (21%), and other products such as hair products and essential oils (2%-8%).

As reported by Ho Chi Minh City’s the Society of Cosmetics, there are more than 400 cosmetic businesses in Vietnam, and 90% of the market share are owned by foreign brands -- the most represented foreign cosmetic products are from Korea (30%), Europe (23%), and Japan (17%).

Cosmetics Registration Authority in Vietnam

The definition of cosmetics are substances or a preparation which contact the outer parts of the human body (skin, hair system, fingernails, toenails, lips, and external reproductive organs) or teeth and mouth mucous membrane with the main purpose to cleanse, aromatize, change the external characteristics or form, adjust body’s smell, safeguard body, or maintain the human body in good condition. Registration of cosmetics imported to Vietnam is managed by Drug Administration of Vietnam (DAV) under Vietnam Ministry of Health (MOH) which use a series of safety regulations and certificates. Importers and exporters must obtain relevant local certificates prior to importing and exporting.

Regulation Framework

For quality assurance and product identification, all imported and exported cosmetic products are required to be registered with MOH in Vietnam. However, for foreign firms exporting cosmetics to Vietnam, no particular regulations have been enacted yet.

Taxes and Tariff

Taxes are applicable in the cosmetic regulation framework as well, including a 10% Value Added Tax (VAT) and various tariff rates depending on country of import. For import duty of cosmetic products, it is determined by the shipment’s CIF value of the shipment. VAT calculation on imported cosmetics is based on CIF value with the addition of import duty.

Documents Required for Cosmetics Registration

The following documents are required for cosmetics registration in Vietnam:

Proclamation report of cosmetics
Company registration certificate (copy)
The power of attorney of the producer/owner of the product (original or notarized copy)
Free sales certificate

The Product Information File

It consists of four parts:

Product descriptions and summary of administrative documents
Product quality
Materials quality
Safety and efficiency

Safety of Cosmetic Products

It is the responsibility of cosmetics producers and owners to assess product safety according to the ASEAN safety guideline and attributes specified in Annex 06-MP. In this annex, there are restrictions set out for heavy metals and microbial parameters in cosmetic products. All other requirements in regards to cosmetic ingredients can be found in the latest version of ASEAN Cosmetic Treaty.

Issuance and Process of Documents

Cosmetic importers and retailers including both companies and individuals, shall apply for DAV registration documents.

Applicants will receive the registration number from the authority within three business days after the authority has received fully the required registration documents and registration fee.

Validity of Registration Number

The registration number is valid for five years since the issuance date. If you wish to extend your product sales upon its expiration, you must register before the expiration date and the registration fee is applicable as well.

Import of Cosmetics

Cosmetic products with a valid registration number issued by the MOH are granted permission to import into Vietnam. Producers and owners of cosmetics that shall import products are required to present the registration certificate to DAV.

Cosmetics Registration Requirements

According to Vietnam’s Law, notification numbers are not required on cosmetic packages. Below is the information required on the label in accordance to ASEAN regulations, and they must be clearly displayed and printed.

Name and function of products
Complete ingredients formula
Instruction of usage
Country of origin (where cosmetics are made)
Name and address of company or individual responsible for product sales (must be written in Vietnamese)
Weight or volume
Manufacturing date or expiry date and best-use-before date (DD/MM/YYYY) -- for product stability less than 30 months, expiry date is mandatory.
Warning about usage safety
Manufacturing lot number

When is proclamation required?

Since cosmetics are in direct contact with human body, they are strictly regulated to prevent any health-related issues. As such, special procedures are applied to importers and producers to ensure usage safety. These procedures are under the cosmetic management Circular 06/2011/TT-BYT issued by MOH based on ASEAN Cosmetic Convention.

Cosmetics produced in Vietnam or imported into Vietnam are required to go through declaration procedure before they can be sold. As a result, individuals or companies selling cosmetic products in Vietnamese market are responsible for acquiring permissions through cosmetic product proclamation with the authority and ensuring the product quality, safety, and effectiveness. However, in some special circumstances, such as importing cosmetics for study, experiment, gift, etc., exemptions are available.

Domestic Cosmetic Products

For cosmetics sold domestically, cosmetics are required to be equipped with a receipt number of cosmetic product proclamation before products can be sold in the market. For that matter, individuals and companies must proclaim cosmetic products manually before being circulated in the market.
Once cosmetics have fulfilled the quality standards for circulation, the dossiers for the sales of cosmetics still needs to comply with other cosmetic quality requirements. The dossiers for proclamation of cosmetics domestically include:

Proclamation report of cosmetics
Company registration certificate (copy) of the organization responsible for circulating products into the market and the products manufacturer
The power of attorney of the producer/owner of the product (original or notarized copy)
Free sales certificate

International Cosmetic Products

For international cosmetic products imported into Vietnam, companies must fulfill the following steps:

1. Importers must proclaim products based on Circular 06/2011/TT-BYT

2. The dossier for proclamation includes the following:

Proclamation report
Copy of business registration certificate
Original or notarized copy of letter of attorney
Certificate of free sales

3. Upon the receipt of the proclamation receipt number, company must submit the receipt number to the customs

4. In addition to the customs, dossier must also submit the following:

Customs declaration (original)
Sales contract (copy)
Commercial invoice (copy)
Certificate of origin form D (original)