Cosmetics
Cosmetic rules vary widely around the world, but most are built on the same foundations - an ingredient framework (often modelled on the EU), product notification or registration, a local responsible party, and safety substantiation backed by ISO 22716 GMP.
At Taylored Consultancy Ltd, we help you build a compliant core that travels - a sound formulation, safety dossier and labelling baseline - then advise you closely on the specifics of each market, from the ASEAN Cosmetic Directive to the GCC and beyond.
Clearing the path to market -
regulatory and quality expertise that gets your cosmetics safe, compliant, and ready for market - wherever you launch.
We help you prioritise markets and plan the most efficient route to compliance across several countries at once.
We check your formulation against the relevant ingredient annexes and restricted-substance lists for your target markets.
We build a safety dossier - safety report and product information - to a high standard so it can be adapted for multiple markets.
From ASEAN notification to GCC and other regimes, we guide you through each market's registration requirements.
Most markets require a local importer, agent or responsible person. We help you understand and arrange the right representation.
We help you meet local-language labelling and claims requirements for each region.
We help you implement ISO 22716 - the de facto global GMP benchmark for cosmetics.
Every market has its own rules, and the detail matters. Get in touch for a free consultation and we'll map out exactly what your product needs, wherever you're headed.
ISO 22716 - Cosmetics Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)
ISO 9001 - General quality management
ISO 14001 - Environmental management (where relevant)
The EU's framework, built around Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, is generally the toughest and most widely copied, which is why so many other markets, from parts of Asia to the GCC, base their own ingredient lists and safety expectations on it. Building your formulation, PIF and CPSR to EU standards from the outset tends to make expansion into other markets considerably smoother later.
Not necessarily from scratch. A well-built CPSR and PIF, developed to a robust standard, can usually be adapted rather than rewritten for each new market, since most countries' safety expectations sit on similar foundations even where the notification process differs. We help build that adaptable "compliant core" so expansion into a new market is a matter of tailoring, not starting again.
The fastest route is usually to build your formulation, safety documentation and labelling to a high common standard first, typically EU-aligned, rather than tackling each market from a blank page. From there, expansion becomes a case of local notification, appointing the right local representative and adjusting labelling and claims, which is far quicker than starting compliance work fresh in every country you enter.
Most do, in some form, whether that's called a Responsible Person, an importer of record, a local agent or a trading licence holder, and it's one of the most consistent requirements across markets worldwide. The exact role and its legal obligations vary by country, but almost nowhere can you sell without a locally accountable party attached to the product.
Significantly. What counts as an acceptable cosmetic claim in one market can tip a product into a different regulatory category entirely in another, particularly around therapeutic or medical-sounding language, and the evidence standard expected to back up a claim also varies by region. Reviewing claims market by market, rather than assuming what works in one place works everywhere, is essential before you expand.
ISO 22716 is the internationally recognised standard for cosmetic Good Manufacturing Practice, and while not every country makes it a strict legal requirement, it's accepted almost everywhere as evidence that a product is manufactured safely and consistently. Building your manufacturing around it from the start gives you a GMP standard that travels with you as you enter new markets, rather than needing to be reworked per country.
Not necessarily. Testing such as microbial, heavy metal, stability and compatibility testing is about the product itself, so results are often valid across multiple markets provided the formulation, packaging and manufacturing conditions stay the same. What does need repeating market by market is the safety assessment and notification process, since each region has its own requirements for how that same testing evidence gets used and presented. We review your existing test data first to identify what's reusable before recommending any new testing.
Still have questions? Contact us and we'll be happy to help.
