Beating Cosmetic Product Registration Hurdles

On January 1, 2008, Asean member countries implemented the Asean Harmonization Cosmetics Regulation Scheme in order to harmonize a previously chaotic process. A multitude of confusing laws and procedures has now been transformed into a streamlined system with just a single category for cosmetic products and an efficient registration process.

The Thai Food and Drug Administration (FDA) implemented a new online cosmetic product registration system on November 1, 2010. Registration is now less time consuming and more environmentally friendly than under the previous paper-based system.

The FDA has also created a single product category, which forces some cosmetic companies to re-register their products. This is an important change from past practice, when there were three categories for cosmetic products.