China Opens the Door Wider: NMPA Expands Cosmetic Animal-Testing Exemptions

China has taken another notable step away from routine animal testing for cosmetics. In the newly released NMPA Announcement on Matters Concerning Cosmetic Registration and Notification on July 29, 2026, the National Medical Products Administration expands the scope of cosmetic products that may be exempted from submitting toxicological test reports—an area historically associated with animal testing requirements in China.

Under the new announcement, certain special cosmetics—hair perming products, non-oxidative hair dye products, and freckle-removing/whitening products that work only through physical covering effects—may be exempted from submitting toxicological test reports during registration. The exemption also extends to general cosmetics using new cosmetic ingredients, except for children's cosmetics, provided that specific conditions are met.

The two key conditions are:

The manufacturer must have obtained a production quality management system qualification certificate issued by the competent government authority of the country or region where it is located; and
The product safety risk assessment must be sufficient to fully confirm product safety.

The announcement also leaves the door open for further expansion. According to the new measure, based on developments in scientific research, the NMPA's cosmetic technical review body may formulate technical guidelines and adjust the product scope eligible for reduced or waived animal-testing-related materials in due course.

What This Regulatory Change Means?

For years, animal testing has been one of the most sensitive barriers for international beauty brands entering the Chinese market. China has gradually moved from a rigid toxicological testing model toward a more risk-based framework built around safety assessment, manufacturing quality management and alternative methods.

The 2026 announcement is significant because it pushes the exemption logic beyond general cosmetics and into selected special cosmetic categories—a group traditionally subject to more stringent pre-market review. Special cosmetics in China are subject to registration management, while general cosmetics are subject to notification management under China's cosmetic registration and notification framework. NMPA's registration and notification rules make clear that China applies registration administration to special cosmetics and high-risk new cosmetic ingredients, and notification administration to general cosmetics and other new cosmetic ingredients.

The expansion of the exemption scope may signal further developments in China's approach to animal testing requirements. As the regulatory framework continues to evolve, additional adjustments to the application and interpretation of animal testing exemptions may become possible, potentially reshaping compliance expectations for cosmetics companies in the future.

How Mandatory Testing Evolved into Conditional Exemption?

China's cosmetics animal-testing regime has changed substantially over the past decade.

2014: The first major shift came in 2014, when China began allowing domestically produced non-special-use cosmetics to avoid mandatory animal testing under certain conditions. This did not immediately solve the issue for imported cosmetics, but it marked the start of a more flexible regulatory approach.

2021: A much larger change arrived with the new cosmetic regulatory framework implemented in 2021. Under the CSAR framework, imported general cosmetics became eligible for toxicological test report exemptions if the manufacturer had obtained a government-issued GMP or quality management certificate and the product safety assessment could adequately confirm safety.