New policy set to speed up imports of cosmetic goods

A foundation stick from French cosmetics giant L'Oreal SA has become a must-have for some after making its Asian debut in China this summer, thanks to a new policy adopted by the Pudong New Area for cosmetics imports that has significantly sped up approval processes.

The Shanghai Pudong New Area launched the new registration policy in March 2017 to greatly shorten waiting times for cosmetic imports approvals. To date, the policy has benefited a total of 1,680 imported items.

"The creative alteration of the import process has saved at least three months for our companies, as imports and sales activities can be undertaken right after registration. In the meantime, all the administration requirements for product safety have not been lowered or changed," said Tu Chunyi, vice-president for product safety, regulatory affairs and claims at L'Oreal Asia.