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Selling cosmetics and beauty products in Australia

In Australia, cosmetics carry an ingredient list under the Consumer Goods (Cosmetics) Information Standard 2020, made under the Australian Consumer Law. Businesses that import or make their chemicals register with AICIS. Some ingredients fall under the Poisons Standard, and products with therapeutic claims, including sunscreens made mainly for sun protection, are therapeutic goods.

Updated · Each section links to the official source it comes from

Ingredient labelling
Consumer Goods (Cosmetics) Information Standard 2020
Chemicals
Introducers register with AICIS each year from 1 September
Ingredient names
English or INCI names
Scheduled ingredients
Poisons Standard, applied through state and territory law
Sunscreens
Therapeutic goods unless excluded as secondary sunscreen products
Cosmetic animal testing
No animal test data from 1 July 2020 to categorise cosmetic-only chemicals

Before a product goes on sale

The questions to answer, in the order they usually come up.

  1. 1Is it a cosmetic, or a therapeutic good because of its claims or sunscreen? Read more
  2. 2Does the container list the ingredients in the required order and names? Read more
  3. 3Is the business that imports or makes it registered with AICIS, and is each chemical's introduction category on record? Read more
  4. 4Does any ingredient appear in the Poisons Standard, and do the required warnings appear? Read more
  5. 5Who reports a serious injury or recalls the product if needed? Read more

The rules, by area

What each area covers, the texts that set it, and what the official pages say.

Ingredient labelling

The mandatory information standard for cosmetics under the Australian Consumer Law.

  • A cosmetic product is a substance or preparation placed in contact with an external part of the body, including the mouth and teeth, to alter odours, change appearance, cleanse, maintain, perfume or protect it.
  • Ingredients are listed on the container, or on the product if there is no container, in descending order by volume or mass; or ingredients at 1% or more in descending order, then those under 1% and colour additives in any order.
  • The list is prominent and clearly legible, using English names or International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient (INCI) names; a list in another language may also appear.
  • Fragrances may be shown as 'fragrance' or 'parfum', and flavours as 'flavour' or 'aroma'; colour additives used across a shade range may be listed with 'may contain' or '+/–'.
  • The standard does not apply to therapeutic goods, free samples or testers. Alcohol-based hand sanitisers show alcohol content as % v/v.
  • Supplying goods that do not comply with an information standard is prohibited under section 136 of the Australian Consumer Law.

How we help: Compliant Always reads your label's ingredient list against your formula and the order and naming rules in the standard, and shows where they differ. Ask about this

Industrial chemicals and AICIS

Registration and categorisation for businesses that import or make cosmetic ingredients.

  • The Australian Industrial Chemicals Introduction Scheme (AICIS) regulates the introduction, meaning import or manufacture, of industrial chemicals; an ingredient of a cosmetic can be an industrial chemical.
  • Introducers register for each registration year, which begins on 1 September, and pay a registration charge. Businesses importing products containing industrial chemicals, such as cosmetics and soap, register with AICIS.
  • Each introduction falls in a category: listed, exempted, reported, assessed, commercial evaluation or exceptional circumstances. Lower-risk exempted and reported introductions carry record-keeping and reporting obligations; medium-to-high-risk introductions need an assessment certificate.
  • Introducers keep records showing each chemical introduced, its category and the basis for the category, and make an annual declaration.
  • For chemicals introduced solely for cosmetics, rules may bar using animal test data from tests on or after 1 July 2020 to decide the category.

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the category and the basis for it with each ingredient you introduce, alongside suppliers' composition data, so the annual declaration draws on the record. Ask about this

The Poisons Standard

Scheduled substances and the label warnings that go with them.

  • The Poisons Standard classifies substances into Schedules as recommendations to the states and territories, which apply them through their own law.
  • Some cosmetic ingredients are scheduled, with exceptions for products below set concentrations: hydroquinone and mercury, for example, have Schedule entries that name cosmetic use.
  • Certain hair dye ingredients are exempt only when the container and pack carry set statements, such as 'KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN' and a skin sensitisation warning, in letters at least 1.5 mm high.

How we help: Compliant Always reads your ingredient list against the Poisons Standard entries that name cosmetic use, and reads your label for the statements an exemption depends on. Ask about this

Cosmetics, therapeutic goods and sunscreens

When a beauty product is regulated by the TGA instead.

  • Goods represented for therapeutic use, such as preventing or alleviating a disease or influencing a physiological process, are therapeutic goods; the cosmetics definitions in the Industrial Chemicals Act and the information standard exclude them.
  • Products containing sunscreen are excluded from the Therapeutic Goods Act only on conditions: for example, moisturisers that are secondary sunscreen products under AS/NZS 2604:2021, contain no Schedule 2, 3, 4 or 8 substance, and are not presented as SPF above 15 or water-resistant.
  • Antiperspirants that derive their properties only from inorganic salts of aluminium, zinc or zirconium are among the specified excluded goods.

How we help: Compliant Always sets your claims and SPF statements beside the exclusion conditions, so a product that has crossed into therapeutic goods is visible. Ask about this

Product safety and recalls

The Australian Consumer Law duties that apply once a cosmetic is on sale.

  • A supplier who becomes aware of a death or serious injury or illness that may have been caused by use or foreseeable misuse of consumer goods notifies the Commonwealth Minister within 2 days (section 131).
  • A business that voluntarily recalls consumer goods for safety reasons notifies the Commonwealth Minister within 2 days (section 128).
  • The ACCC deals with widespread issues; state and territory consumer protection agencies handle individual complaints.

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the batch records, formula and label versions a report or recall notice needs, so the details are in one place. Ask about this

Who answers for what

WhoWhat they answer forHow we help
Manufacturer or importerThe ingredient list on the container, and AICIS registration for the chemicals introduced.The formula, label and introduction categories kept together.
BrandClaims that could make the product a therapeutic good, and label warnings required by the Poisons Standard.Each claim and warning set beside the rule it answers.
Supplier of the goodsSupplying only compliant goods, and reporting serious injuries within 2 days.Batch and label records ready for a report.
Ingredient supplierComposition data that lets the introducer categorise each chemical.Supplier documents collected once and shown to each customer that asks.

States and territories

Food standards are developed by FSANZ and adopted without variation by the states and territories, whose agencies and local councils enforce the Food Standards Code. The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry enforces it at the border.

The Australian Consumer Law is enforced by the ACCC for widespread issues and by state and territory consumer protection agencies, which handle individual complaints.

Questions businesses ask

Do cosmetics need an ingredient list in Australia?
Yes. The Consumer Goods (Cosmetics) Information Standard 2020 requires ingredients to be listed on the container, or on the product if there is no container, in descending order by volume or mass, or in the alternative order the standard allows.
Can I use INCI names on Australian cosmetic labels?
Yes. Ingredient names must be either their English names or their International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient (INCI) names, prominently shown and clearly legible. A list in another language may also appear.
Do I need to register my cosmetics with a regulator in Australia?
There is no product registration for cosmetics, but a business that imports or makes the industrial chemicals in them, including importing finished cosmetics, registers with AICIS each registration year and categorises each introduction.
What is AICIS?
The Australian Industrial Chemicals Introduction Scheme, established by the Industrial Chemicals Act 2019, regulates the import and manufacture of industrial chemicals, including those in cosmetics, soap and cleaning products.
Can I list 'fragrance' instead of each fragrance ingredient?
Yes. A fragrance may be shown as 'fragrance', 'fragrances', 'parfum' or 'parfums', or by its ingredients. Flavours may be shown as 'flavour' or 'aroma'.
Is sunscreen a cosmetic in Australia?
A product whose primary purpose is protection from solar radiation is a therapeutic good, and sunscreens can be listed medicines. Some products containing sunscreen, such as moisturisers or foundations that are secondary sunscreen products, are excluded if they meet the conditions in the Excluded Goods Determination.
Are animal-tested ingredients allowed in Australian cosmetics?
For industrial chemicals introduced solely for cosmetics, rules may bar using animal test data from tests on or after 1 July 2020 when deciding the introduction category, and in applications under the Industrial Chemicals Act.
Are any cosmetic ingredients restricted in Australia?
Yes. The Poisons Standard has entries naming cosmetic use for some, such as hydroquinone and mercury, and permits certain hair dye ingredients only with set warning statements on the label.
Do I have to report a reaction to my cosmetic?
A supplier who becomes aware of a death or serious injury or illness that may have been caused by its consumer goods notifies the Commonwealth Minister within 2 days, under section 131 of the Australian Consumer Law.
How does Compliant Always help with selling in Australia?
Our team reads the rules for the markets you sell in, including the Commonwealth, state and territory layers in Australia. Compliant Always shows which apply to your product and keeps the documents behind each one ready. It shows what the requirements say and what your documents show; you decide.

Sources

Compliant Always is a product of Lettuce Labs LLC. It shows what requirements say and what your documents show. It is not legal advice, and you decide.

Tell us what you make, and we will show you the rules for it.

Name the product and the markets you sell in. We will come back to you with what applies in Australia and what your paperwork needs to show.

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