In China, the cosmetic ingredients are regulated by National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) on the basis of Inventory of Existing Cosmetic Ingredients in China, IECIC 2021. The IECIC 2021 has included 8972 ingredients allowed to be used in cosmetics put in Chinese market. Compared with IECIC 2015, 2021 version includes the reference of highest history usage in rinse-off and leave-on products separately for some ingredients, which are the basic reference for cosmetic safety assessment report, apart from previous reference data of CIR and ECHA.
In addition to IECIC, there are also some positive ingredient lists for some special ingredients, such as hair dyes, colorants, UV filters and preservatives, in the Safety and Technical Standards for Cosmetics 2015.
Those ingredients not included in IECIC 2021 are regulated as new cosmetic ingredient, which should obtain NMPA approval prior to the first commercial use in cosmetic products sold in China.
According to CSAR 2020, new cometic ingredient can be divided into two groups:
- Group 1: ingredients with low risk concern, such as emollient, skin conditioner
- Group 2: ingredients with high risk concern, such as UV filter, whitening agent
Group 1 follows new cosmetic ingredient filing procedures while group 2 follows the registration process.
Therefore, if there is any new ingredient in your product, you have to apply for ingredient approval before product registration. However, it’s very time and cost consuming, so only big ingredients suppliers are willing to and have to fulfil it.