CDSCO Cosmetics Import Registration: Step-by-Step

In short: CDSCO cosmetics import registration is compulsory, because no cosmetic may be imported into India unless it is registered with the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) under the Cosmetics Rules, 2020.

The application is filed online in Form COS-1 on CDSCO’s SUGAM portal by the manufacturer, its authorised agent or importer in India, or an Indian subsidiary it authorises. If approved, CDSCO issues an Import Registration Certificate in Form COS-2, which stays valid as long as the retention fee is paid every five years.

The steps below follow two official CDSCO documents: the Guidance Document on application for an Import Registration Certificate (PDF) (19 January 2021) and the FAQ on registration and import of cosmetics (PDF). The Rules themselves were published as G.S.R. 763(E) on 15 December 2020.

Step 1: Make sure the product is a cosmetic, not a drug

India defines cosmetics and drugs separately in section 3 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. CDSCO’s FAQ is direct: a product with a drug claim on its label or literature does not fall under the definition of a cosmetic and cannot be registered as one. Rule 36 adds that no cosmetic may convey any idea that is false or misleading.

Before you build the file, read every label and leaflet line. Claims about treating acne, healing or other medical effects can push a product out of the cosmetics route entirely.

Step 2: Appoint the Indian applicant and sign the authorisation

Under rule 12, the application can come from the manufacturer itself, its authorised agent or importer in India, or a subsidiary in India authorised by the manufacturer. In practice, a Korean brand appoints an Indian company to act as its authorised agent.

The authorisation follows the First Schedule format¹. According to the guidance, it must:

• Name the manufacturer, its manufacturing premises and the authorised Indian agent, matching Form COS-1.
• List each product, variant and pack size with the actual manufacturing site, categorised according to the Fourth Schedule.
• Be signed, stamped and dated by both the manufacturer and the Indian agent, on every page including the product list.
• Be authenticated, either before a First Class Magistrate in India, before an equivalent authority in the country of origin, attested by the Indian Embassy, or apostilled.

The First Schedule wording also states that the authorised agent remains responsible for imported cosmetics even after the authorisation is withdrawn.

Step 3: Assemble the document set

The guidance lists what goes into the COS-1 file:

1. Covering letter stating whether the application is new, an endorsement or a re-registration.
2. The manufacturer’s authorisation (First Schedule).
3. Part I of the Second Schedule: particulars of the manufacturer and products, plus undertakings.
4. Ingredient list with percentages, in standard nomenclature, signed by the manufacturer. Raw materials in Annex A of IS 4707 Part 2 must not be used; colours must be those permitted by IS 4707 and the Tenth Schedule, with limits on arsenic, lead and other heavy metals; mercury and hexachlorophene are restricted.
5. Labels for each product and variant, meeting Chapter VI (see Step 6).
6. Specifications and test methods. Products covered by the Ninth Schedule must meet the Indian standards listed there; others must meet the Rules and the standards of the country of origin.
7. Manufacturing licence, registration or marketing authorisation from the country of origin, or an undertaking if no such document exists there.
8. Free sale certificate from the national regulator or another competent body, authenticated as the guidance describes, with a correlation chart to the COS-1 product list.
9. Undertaking that the products have not been tested on animals. Cosmetics tested on animals after 12 November 2014 may not be imported.
10. Test report or undertaking on heavy metals and hexachlorophene.

Step 4: Pay the fee and file Form COS-1 for CDSCO cosmetics import registration

Fees are paid online through Bharatkosh and the receipt is uploaded with the application. The guidance quotes the Third Schedule as follows:

Confirm the current schedule before paying, since these figures come from the 2021 guidance.

Step 5: Wait for review and keep the certificate alive

Under rule 13, if the application is complete, the Central Licensing Authority grants or rejects it within six months, giving reasons in writing for a rejection. The FAQ notes CDSCO’s own target of 90 days, from a 2014 circular.

Once granted, the Form COS-2 certificate “shall remain valid in perpetuity”, in the FAQ’s words, provided the retention fee is paid before five years from issue, unless it is suspended or cancelled.

A late fee of 2% of the retention fee per month applies for up to 180 days; if it is still unpaid after that, the certificate is deemed cancelled. New products from an already registered site and category can be added by endorsement.

Step 6: Label for the Indian market

Labels must follow rule 34 and Chapter VI. The guidance lists, among other items:

• Name of the cosmetic, and the name and address of the manufacturer and the actual manufacturing premises (or “Made in [country]”).
• Expiry or use-before date, and a batch or lot number.
• Net contents, warnings and directions where a hazard exists.
• The import registration certificate number, preceded by “RC”, “RC No” or “Reg. Cert. No”, with the importer’s name and address.
• An ingredient list headed “INGREDIENTS”, ingredients above 1% in descending order. Small packs (60 ml or 30 g and below) are exempt from this line.

The FAQ confirms that importers may add India-specific details, such as the importer’s name and address and the RC number, by sticker after landing, at bonded warehouses.

Step 7: Clear the consignment at the port

At clearance, the port office asks for the manufacturer’s undertaking that the cosmetic has not been tested on animals on or after 12 November 2014 (FAQ Q53, citing a 2015 circular). Keep a copy with each shipment’s documents, together with the COS-2 certificate.

Related reading and pages

For the overall Korean side of the process, see how to export cosmetics from Korea.

SEONGWOO GLOBAL is a Korean cosmetics wholesale exporter with companies in Seoul and Hong Kong. If you are registering Korean products in India, tell us which brands and products you are considering and we can discuss supply.

Brands we supply · FAQ · Contact us

Notes

1. CDSCO, Guidance Document on Application Submission for obtaining Import Registration Certificate for import of cosmetics into India (PDF), item 4.2 “Authorisation from Manufacturer as per First Schedule” and Annexure-I (First Schedule, rule 12(3) of the Cosmetics Rules, 2020), verified 2026-10-25. ↩