Breaking! China Releases the Inventory of Existing Cosmetic Ingredients in China 2021 (IECIC 2021)

On April 30, 2021, China National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) finalized the Inventory of Existing Cosmetic Ingredients in China 2021 (IECIC 2021), which is one of the significant subsidiary regulations of Cosmetic Supervision and Administration Regulation (CSAR) and will come into force on May 1, 2021.

Introduction of IECIC

IECIC is an objective and comprehensive collection of ingredients that have been used in cosmetics produced and sold in China. It serves as the sole reference for determining the regulatory status of cosmetic ingredients. All ingredients excluded from the Inventory are deemed "new ingredients" and subject to mandatory pre-market registration or notification with the NMPA under new cosmetic regulations.

It was first introduced in 2014 and last updated in 2015. Compared with the 2015 version, the IECIC 2021 not only lists the Chinese name, INCI name/English name of the ingredients, but also newly added the ingredients’ highest historical use concentration in rinse-off products, highest historical use concentration in leave-on products and notes.

(IECIC 2021)

The notes are divided into five types, which include:

• Prohibited ingredients in the Safety and Technical Standards for Cosmetics (STSC) (35 ingredients in total);

• To be adjusted as prohibited ingredients in the STSC (17 ingredients in total);

• Used in accordance with the requirements of the STSC (723 ingredients in total);

• Former name (20 ingredients in total);

• Blank.

Noteworthy Points of the IECIC 2021

1. 8972 Cosmetic Existing Ingredients

The IECIC 2021 increases the total number of existing cosmetic ingredients from the original 8783 to 8972. When using ingredients listed in this Inventory, cosmetic registrants and notifiers shall comply with relevant requirements of the national laws and regulations, mandatory national standards and technical specifications, and bear the responsibility for product quality and safety.

2. Highest Historical Use Concentration of Ingredients