FDI cosmetics distribution and retail in Vietnam has a central legal gate quite different from ordinary consumer goods: cosmetic product notification. Under the cosmetics management framework domesticating the ASEAN Cosmetic Directive in Circular 06/2011/TT-BYT, every cosmetic product — by product name, formula and manufacturer — must hold a notification receipt number for its product notification dossier before being placed on the market; for imported cosmetics, the receipt number is issued by the Drug Administration of Vietnam. The organization named in the notification is the one responsible for placing the product on the Vietnamese market and legally answerable for its safety and quality — an exclusive FDI distributor must stand in that position itself or duly authorize a Vietnamese unit.
Applicable legal framework
On warehousing, it should be said plainly to avoid wrong consulting costs: cosmetics law sets no separate cosmetics warehouse license, and there is no specialized warehouse-condition code of the pharmaceutical-warehouse type. The enterprise’s duty is to store products under exactly the conditions the manufacturer declares on the label — temperature, light, humidity — in an ordinary goods warehouse meeting those storage conditions, with zoning for conforming goods, goods pending handling and expired goods, plus in-out-stock records serving traceability when a recall is ordered. The general warehousing conditions of a distribution enterprise are covered in a separate article; the boundary to remember here is that a cosmetics warehouse is under storage and traceability discipline, not a separate warehouse licensing regime.
Applying the rules
Documents to import cosmetics for sale come in three layers: the notification layer — a notification dossier with a receipt number for each product; the origin layer — a certificate of free sale (CFS) from the producing country and an authorization letter from the manufacturer or brand owner for the organization named in the notification in Vietnam; and the logistics layer — the customs declaration and a Vietnamese sub-label under goods labeling rules before circulation. A product holding a notification number whose consignment documents do not match the notified manufacturer is still held for inspection — notification is a condition of the product, not a pass for every consignment.
Practical recommendations
Selling cosmetics online is not an out-of-law channel: the online seller must hold business registration with suitable business lines, the products sold must be notified products, and activity on platforms or websites must comply with the E-commerce Law 122/2025/QH15 and Decree 248/2026/ND-CP. If the matter touches cosmetics advertising, one more condition applies: cosmetics advertising is penalized under Decree 87/2026/ND-CP with the Clause 3, Article 6 convention of individual levels and organizations paying double — and cosmetics must never be advertised as medicines, the most penalized boundary in this sector. The general wholesale distribution rights of FDI enterprises and general distribution warehousing conditions are cross-referenced in separate articles.
Frequently asked questions
Must each cosmetic product be declared before sale in Vietnam?
Yes. Each cosmetic product must hold a notification receipt number before circulation under Circular 06/2011/TT-BYT; for imports the Drug Administration of Vietnam issues the receipt number, and the organization named in the notification answers for the product.
What conditions must a cosmetics warehouse meet?
There is no separate cosmetics warehouse license: the warehouse must maintain exactly the storage conditions declared by the manufacturer (temperature, light, humidity), with zoning for conforming, pending and expired goods and in-out-stock records for traceability.
What documents are needed to import cosmetics for sale?
A notification dossier with a receipt number for each product, a certificate of free sale (CFS), an authorization letter from the manufacturer or brand owner, the customs declaration and a Vietnamese sub-label before circulation.
Must selling cosmetics online be business-registered?
Yes. Online selling still requires business registration with suitable business lines, the products must be notified products, and the E-commerce Law 122/2025/QH15 and Decree 248/2026/ND-CP framework must be followed.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council