Statutory Instrument 1989 No. 2233

The Cosmetic Products (Safety) Regulations 1989

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© Crown Copyright 1989

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1989 No. 2233

CONSUMER PROTECTION

The Cosmetic Products (Safety) Regulations 1989

Whereas the Secretary of State has, in accordance with section 11(5) of the Consumer Protection Act 1987^[1], consulted such organisations as appear to him to be representative of interests substantially affected by these Regulations, such other persons as he considers appropriate and the Health and Safety Commission:

And whereas the Secretary of State is a Minister designated^[2] for the purposes of section 2 of the European Communities Act 1972^[3] in relation to measures for safety and consumer protection as respects cosmetic products and any provisions concerning the composition, labelling, marketing, classification or description of cosmetic products and in relation to indication of origin on imported goods:

Now, therefore, the Secretary of State in exercise of powers conferred on him by sections 11, 28 and 30 of the said Act of 1987 and by section 2 of the said Act of 1972 and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf hereby makes the following Regulations:-

Citation, commencement and revocation
    1.—(1)  These Regulations may be cited as the Cosmetic Products (Safety) Regulations 1989 and except as provided by paragraphs (2) to (5) below shall come into force on 1st January 1990.

    (2)  Regulation 4(2) and Schedule 1, in so far as they relate only to entry numbers 37, 38, 47 (cross-referenced in column 3 with entry number 496) and 87 and to entry numbers 247, 558 and 680 (cross-referenced in column 3 with entry numbers 351, 454 and 132 respectively) in that Schedule, regulation 4(3) and Part I of Schedule 2, in so far as they relate only to entry number 52 in that Part, and regulation 4(5) and Part I of Schedule 4, in so far as they relate only to entry number 40 and the deletion of entry number 6 in that Part, shall come into force-
 (a) on 1st January 1990 in relation to the supply of cosmetic products by the manufacturer in or importer into the United Kingdom or, in the case of cosmetic products manufactured or imported into the United Kingdom on behalf of another person, by that other person, except where the cosmetic products are supplied by retail in which case they shall come into force on 1st January 1991; and
 (b) in all other cases, on 1st January 1991.

    (3)  Regulation 4(3) and Schedule 2, in so far as they relate only to entry numbers 53 and 54 in Part 1 of Schedule 2, regulation 4(4)(a)(i) and Part I of Schedule 3, in so far as they relate to the deletion of colouring agent 13065, and regulation 4(5) and Part II of Schedule 4, in so far as they relate to the deletion of entry numbers 7 to 10, 14, 18, 22 and 24 in that Part, shall come into force-
 (a) on 1st January 1990 in relation to the supply of cosmetic products by the manufacturer in or importer into the United Kingdom or, in the case of cosmetic products manufactured or imported into the United Kingdom on behalf of another person, by that other person, except where the cosmetic products are supplied by retail in which case they shall come into force on 1st January 1992; and
 (b) in all other cases, on 1st January 1992.

    (4)  Regulation 4(3) and Part II of Schedule 2, in so far as they relate only to entry number 1 in that Part, regulation 4(4) and Part II of Schedule 3, in so far as they relate only to the deletion of entry numbers 15800, 19120, 20470, 21115, 42170, 45190, 47000, 73905 and 75660 and the requirement in column 4 relating to entry number 42535 in that Part, regulation 4(5) and Part I of Schedule 4, in so far as they relate only to the requirement in column 4 relating to entry number 39 in that Part, and Part II of Schedule 4, in so far as they relate only to entry number 26 and the deletion of entry numbers 1, 3, 5, 19 and 25 in that Part, and regulation 4(6)(a)(ii) and Part II of Schedule 5 shall come into force-
 (a) on 1st January 1991 in relation to the supply of cosmetic products by the manufacturer in or importer into the United Kingdom or, in the case of cosmetic products manufactured or imported into the United Kingdom on behalf of another person, by that other person, except where the cosmetic products are supplied by retail in which case they shall come into force on 1st January 1993; and
 (b) in all other cases, on 1st January 1993.

    (5)  Regulation 6 shall come into force-
 (a) on 1st January 1992 in relation to the supply of cosmetic products by the manufacturer in or importer into the United Kingdom or, in the case of cosmetic products manufactured or imported into the United Kingdom on behalf of another person, by that other person, except where the cosmetic products are supplied by retail in which case it shall come into force on 1st January 1994; and
 (b) in all other cases on 1st January 1994.

    (6)  Subject to paragraph (7) below, the Regulations specified in Schedule 7 are hereby revoked:

    (7)  The notes in Schedules 3 and 4 shall apply.

Interpretation
    2.—(1)  In these Regulations-
"the Directive" means Council Directive No. 76/768/EEC^[4] as amended by Council Directive No. 82/368/EEC^[5], Commission Directive No. 82/147/EEC^[6], Commission Directive No. 83/191/EEC^[7], Commission Directive No. 83/341/EEC^[8], Council Directive No. 83/574/EEC^[9], Commission Directive No. 83/496/EEC^[10], Commission Directive No. 84/415/EEC^[11], Commission Directive No. 85/391/EEC^[12], Commission Directive No. 86/179/EEC^[13], Commission Directive No. 86/199/EEC^[14], Commission Directive No. 87/137/EEC^[15], Commission Directive No. 88/233/EEC^[16], Council Directive No. 88/667/EEC^[17] and Commission Directive No. 89/174/EEC^[18];
"cosmetic product" means any substance or preparation intended to be applied to any part of the external surfaces of the human body (that is to say, the epidermis, hair system, nails, lips and external genital organs) or to the teeth or buccal mucosa wholly or mainly for the purpose of cleaning, perfuming or protecting them or keeping them in good condition or changing their appearance or combating body odour or perspiration except where such cleaning, perfuming, protecting, keeping, changing or combating is wholly for the purpose of treating or preventing disease;
"cosmetic product intended to come into contact with the mucous membranes" means a cosmetic product intended to be applied in the vicinity of the eyes, on the lips, in the oral cavity or to the external genital organs, and does not include any cosmetic product which is intended to come into only brief contact with the skin;
"market research experiment" means any activities conducted for the purpose of ascertaining the opinion of persons of-
 (a) any cosmetic product; or
 (b) anything in, on or with which the cosmetic product is supplied; or
 (c) the appearance or any other characteristic of the cosmetic product or any such thing; or
 (d) the name or description under which the cosmetic product is supplied.


A cosmetic product is not the subject of a market research experiment unless-
 (a) any person to whom a cosmetic product is supplied in the course of the experiment is informed, at or before the time at which it is supplied to him, that it is supplied for the purpose of a market research experiment and
 (b) no consideration in money or money's worth is given by such a person for the cosmetic product or any other cosmetic product supplied to him for comparison.


"preservative" means a substance which is added to a cosmetic product for the primary purpose of inhibiting the development of micro-organisms in that product;
"supply" includes offering to supply, agreeing to supply, exposing for supply and possessing for supply, and cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly; and
"UV filter" means a substance which is added to a sunscreen cosmetic product for the primary purpose of filtering ultra violet rays for the purpose of protecting the epidermis of the user from harmful effects of such ultra violet rays.

    (2)  References in these Regulations to a numbered regulation or Schedule are references to the regulation or Schedule so numbered in these Regulations.

General Requirements
    3.—(1)  Subject to paragraph (2) below, a cosmetic product shall not be liable to cause damage to human health when it is applied under normal conditions of use.

    (2)  For the purposes of regulation 8, paragraph (1) above shall apply only to the supply by the manufacturer in or importer into the United Kingdom or, in the case of cosmetic products manufactured or imported into the United Kingdom on behalf of another person, by that other person.

Particular requirements
    4.—(1)  The following provisions of this regulation are without prejudice to regulation 3 and are subject to regulation 5.

    (2)  A cosmetic product shall not contain any substance listed in column 2 of Schedule 1:
Provided that no account shall be taken of any such substance which is present only as a trace which could not reasonably have been removed during or after manufacture.


    (3)  A cosmetic product shall not contain any substance listed in column 2 of Schedule 2 unless the requirements in columns 3, 4, 5 and (in the case of Part II) 7 of that Schedule in relation to that substance are satisfied.

    (4)  A cosmetic product shall not contain-
 (a) any colouring agent listed in columns 1 and 2 of Schedule 3 with the exception of cosmetic products containing colouring agents intended solely to colour hair unless-
 (i) the requirements in columns 3 and 4 of Part I of that Schedule in relation to that colouring agent are satisfied; or
 (ii) the requirements in columns 3 and 4 of Part II of that Schedule in relation to that colouring agent are satisfied and the cosmetic product in question was supplied on or before the date specified in column 5 of that Part;
 (b) any colouring agent which is not listed in that Schedule with the exception of cosmetic products containing colouring agents intended solely to colour hair;

    (5)  A cosmetic product shall not contain-
 (a) any preservative listed in column 2 of Schedule 4 unless-
 (i) the requirements in columns 3, 4 and 5 of Part I of that Schedule in relation to that preservative are satisfied; or
 (ii) the requirements in columns 3, 4 and 5 of Part II of that Schedule in relation to that preservative are satisfied and the preservative in question is supplied on or before the date specified in column 7 of that Part;
 (b) any preservative which is not listed in that Schedule;
 (c) any preservative listed in column 2 of Part II of Schedule 4 after the date specified in column 7 of that Part.

    (6)  A cosmetic product shall not contain-
 (a) any UV filter listed in column 2 of Schedule 5 unless-
 (i) the requirements in columns 3 and 4 of Part I of that Schedule in relation to that UV filter are satisfied; or
 (ii) the requirements in columns 3 and 4 of Part II of that Schedule in relation to that UV filter are satisfied and the UV filter in question is supplied on or before the date specified in column 6 of that Part;
 (b) any UV filter which is not listed in that Schedule.

    5.—(1)  The Secretary of State may authorise the use in a cosmetic product of a particular substance, not being a substance listed in Schedule 1 or 2.

    (2)  In giving an authorisation the Secretary of State may impose conditions relating to the use of a particular substance in a cosmetic product. The conditions may relate to any matter which the Secretary of State considers appropriate including-
 (a) the purpose of the substance;
 (b) the type of cosmetic product;
 (c) the maximum concentration of the substance in any cosmetic product; and
 (d) information and marking requirements.

    (3)  The Secretary of State may on reasonable notice vary or revoke any authorisation given under paragraph (1) above.

    (4)  On giving, varying or revoking an authorisation, the Secretary of State shall arrange for the authorisation, variation or revocation, as the case may be, to be published in such manner as he considers appropriate for bringing it to the attention of persons who, in his opinion, would be likely to have an interest in it.

    (5)  No person shall be convicted of an offence under section 12 of the Consumer Protection Act 1987 by reason of a cosmetic product's containing a particular substance provided that at the time when but for this regulation an offence would have been committed-
 (a) the use of that particular substance in that cosmetic product was duly authorised; and
 (b) all of the conditions imposed by the authorisation were complied with.

Marking
    6.—(1)  Subject to the following provisions of this regulation, the container and the outer packaging (if any) in which a cosmetic product is supplied or delivered pursuant to any supply, or a label affixed to the product, the container and the outer packaging, shall bear the following particulars:-
 (a) the name or trade name and the address or registered office of the manufacturer of the product or of a supplier thereof, being a manufacturer or supplier established within a member State of the European Economic Community;
 (b) in the case of a cosmetic product likely within 30 months from the manufacture thereof to cease either to comply with the requirements of regulation 3 or to fulfil the purpose for which it was intended, the words "Best before .........." immediately followed by
 (i) the earliest date on which it is likely to so cease; or
 (ii) an indication of where that date appears on the labelling
and any particular precautions to be observed to ensure that the product does not so cease before that date.
 (c) in the case of a cosmetic product containing a substance listed in column 2 of Schedule 2, the information specified in column 6 of that Schedule in relation to that substance;
 (d) in the case of a cosmetic product containing a preservative listed in column 2 of Schedule 4, the information specified in column 6 of that Schedule in relation to that preservative;
 (e) in the case of a cosmetic product containing a UV filter listed in column 2 of Schedule 5, the information specified in column 5 of that Schedule in relation to that UV filter;
 (f) any particular precautions to be observed in use (not being precautions included in the information referred to in sub-paragraphs (b), (c), (d) and (e) above);
 (g) a means of identifying the batch in which the product was manufactured (or, if the product was not manufactured in a batch, a reference from which the date and place of manufacture can be identified):
Provided that the requirements specified in sub-paragraphs (b) and (g) above need not be complied with in relation to a cosmetic product which is the subject of a market research experiment.

    (2)  The particulars referred to in sub-paragraphs (a) to (g) of paragraph (1) above shall be in lettering which is visible, indelible and easily legible.

    (3)  The particulars referred to in sub-paragraph (a) of paragraph (1) above may be abbreviated if such abbreviation does not prevent the person concerned from being identified.

    (4)  The date referred to in sub-paragraph (b) of paragraph (1) above shall include the month and the year, and the month shall precede the year.

    (5)  The particulars referred to in sub-paragraphs (b) to (f ) of paragraph (1) above shall be in the English language; but this shall not prohibit the additional use of other languages.

    (6)  The particulars referred to in sub-paragraphs (c) to (f ) of paragraph (1) above and any special precautionary information on cosmetic products for professional use, in particular, in hairdressing shall appear on the container or on a label attached thereto: provided that where-
 (a) it is impracticable by reason of the size or shape of the container for the said particulars so to appear, or
 (b) two or more products are supplied together as a single item, each product being in a separate container and the containers being enclosed together in outer packaging which bears clear and conspicuous instructions to the effect that the product must be mixed together in specified proportions before use,
the said particulars shall appear on an enclosed leaflet and an indication shall appear on both the container and the outer packaging (if any) or on a label if attached thereto referring the consumer to the information in the leaflet.

    (7)  Where it is impracticable, for reasons of size, for the particulars referred to in sub-paragraph (g) of paragraph (1) above to appear on the container and outer packaging, the said particulars shall appear on the packaging in which the product is exposed for supply.

    (8)  In the case of a supply of soap which is not in a container, either the soap itself or the packaging in which it is exposed for supply or the container in which it was last contained before the supply shall bear the particulars referred to in sub-paragraphs (a) and (g) of paragraph (1) above, and in so far as any of the particulars referred to in sub-paragraphs (b) to (f) of paragraph (1) above are required they shall appear on a leaflet which shall be delivered to the buyer with the soap; and where either of the particulars referred to in sub-paragraphs (a) and (g) of paragraph (1) above appears on the soap itself the requirement of indelibility shall apply only until it has been put into use.

Enforcement
    7.—(1)  No proceedings for an offence under section 12 of the Consumer Protection Act 1987 in respect of a contravention of regulation 8 by reason of the requirements of regulation 3 being not satisfied shall be brought in England or Wales except by or with the consent of the Secretary of State or the Director of Public Prosecutions and in Northern Ireland except by or with the consent of the Secretary of State or the Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland.

    (2)  Regulations 3, 4 and 6 do not apply in any case in which the cosmetic product is supplied for the purposes of exporting that product to any country which is not a member State of the European Economic Community.

    (3)  Regulation 6(5) does not apply in any case in which the person supplying the cosmetic product reasonably believes that it will not be used in the United Kingdom.

    8.    Subject to regulations 5 and 7(2) and (3), no person shall supply any cosmetic product in respect of which any of the requirements of regulation 3, 4 or 6 is not satisfied.

    9.    Any test of goods purchased under section 28, or seized under section 29, of the Consumer Protection Act 1987 (which relates to enforcement) by or on behalf of an enforcement authority for the purpose of ascertaining whether the provisions of these Regulations have been contravened shall in all cases be carried out in accordance with the provisions of paragraphs 2 to 5 of Schedule 6 and any test for which a method is specified in paragraph 6 of that Schedule shall be carried out in accordance with that method.

Eric Forth

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Trade and Industry

29th November 1989

[1] 1987 c. 43. back

[2] S.I. 1972/1811, 1975/1707. back

[3] 1972 c. 68. back

[4] O.J. No. L262, 27.9.76, p. 169. back

[5] O.J. No. L167, 15.6.82, p. 1. back

[6] O.J. No. L63, 6.3.82, p. 26. back

[7] O.J. No. L109, 26.4.83, p. 25. back

[8] O.J. No. L188, 13.7.83, p. 15. back

[9] O.J. No. L332, 28.11.83, p. 38. back

[10] O.J. No. L275, 8.10.83, p. 20. back

[11] O.J. No. L228, 25.8.84, p. 31. back

[12] O.J. No. L224, 22.8.85, p. 40. back

[13] O.J. No. L138, 24.5.86, p. 40. back

[14] O.J. No. L149, 3.6.86, p. 38. back

[15] O.J. No. L56, 26.2.87, p. 20. back

[16] O.J. No. L105, 26.4.88, p. 11. back

[17] O.J. No. L382, 31.12.88, p. 46. back

[18] O.J. No. L64, 8.3.89, p. 10. back

Explanatory Note