The tariff is low and there is no excise, but the Public Health Institute registers cosmetics product by product, authorises each lot and regulates household insecticides and disinfectants. Here is which route applies, what it costs and how Paraguayan products fit in.
In Chile, cosmetics, personal-care products and some household products are controlled by the Public Health Institute (ISP, Instituto de Salud Pública), not the regional health authority that handles food. The governing rule is the national cosmetics control regulation, Decree 239 of 2002. Cosmetics need a sanitary registration per product before they can be sold; hygiene and low-risk products follow a simplified route through an authorised importing establishment; household insecticides and disinfectants need their own ISP registration under Decree 157 of 2007. Each import lot then needs the ISP’s customs destination and use-and-disposal authorisations before it reaches shelves.
The tax side is easy: no excise on cosmetics or cleaning products, 6% duty or zero under an agreement, and 19% VAT. For the general customs procedure and the broker rule, see our Chile customs guide.
Essential oils and perfumery, cosmetic and toilet preparations (HS 33), soaps and washing preparations (34), and household insecticides and disinfectants (3808) pay the uniform 6% duty on CIF, or 0% for origins with a trade agreement. Chile has no excise on cosmetics or cleaning products.
| CIF US$100,000 | Non-agreement origin | Agreement origin (EU, US, Mercosur incl. Paraguay…) |
|---|---|---|
| Duty | 6,000 | 0 |
| Excise | None | None |
| VAT 19% | 20,140 | 19,000 |
| Total at clearance | 26,140 | 19,000 |
| Pure cost for a VAT-registered importer | 6,000 plus ISP fees | ISP fees |
The real costs are regulatory: registration fees, a Chilean technical structure and the time each new product takes to clear the ISP.
| Product | Regulator and route | Validity |
|---|---|---|
| Cosmetics (make-up, creams, lotions; special cosmetics such as sunscreens and hair dyes; children’s cosmetics) | ISP sanitary registration (registro sanitario) per product before sale, under DS 239 | 5 years, renewable |
| Hygiene, low-risk and odorising products (HBO): solid and liquid soaps, shampoos, toothpaste, deodorants, perfumes and others listed by ISP resolution | Simplified route: ISP authorisation of the importing establishment, then notification of each product before sale; full registration optional | Linked to the establishment |
| Household and sanitary pesticides (insecticides, repellents for surfaces, rodenticides) | ISP registration per product under DS 157 of 2007 | 5 years |
| Disinfectants for sanitary and household use | ISP registration per product under DS 157 of 2007 | 5 years |
| Detergents and general cleaning products | No product registration; hazard labelling under DS 57 where the mixture is classified as hazardous | – |
Classification is the first decision. A product with a therapeutic claim — anti-acne, anti-hair-loss, treatment of a skin condition — may be a pharmaceutical rather than a cosmetic, and an antibacterial hand gel or a skin repellent can sit on the borderline. Cosmetics defined as “special” under DS 239 are those that carry a risk because of their formulation, the concentration of active ingredients or their purpose, and require specific directions for use.
Law and practice: Decree 239/2002 of the Ministry of Health, Article 5 (definitions of low-risk products, hygiene products, special cosmetics and registration).
Registration is filed online with the ISP and verifies the product name, cosmetic purpose, formula and the applicant’s legal standing. Only a company legally established in Chile can hold the registration — a subsidiary, the distributor, or a regulatory consultancy acting as holder — and the holder needs a qualified pharmacist (químico farmacéutico) as technical director.
Formula
Complete qualitative and quantitative formula, with ingredients in INCI nomenclature; check against ISP’s list of prohibited ingredients.
Quality
Specifications, stability and quality-control data; a certificate of analysis per batch at import.
Origin documents
Certificate of free sale from the country of origin, legalised or apostilled.
Label
The Spanish label to be used in Chile.
Validity
Five years, renewable before expiry.
Fees are set in the ISP’s annual tariff (service code 4112001 for cosmetic registration), with separate charges for the importing establishment and for each lot. Filing is online through the ISP’s GICONA system. Timing depends on the queue and the quality of the dossier — plan months, not weeks, for the first registrations, and register before the first commercial shipment.
Law and practice: DS 239/2002; ISP online procedure for cosmetic registration (service code 4112001); Health Code (DFL 725).
As with food, control also happens per shipment. A cosmetic import lot needs a customs destination certificate (CDA) to move the goods from customs to the importer’s warehouse, and an authorisation of use and disposal (uso y disposición) from the ISP before distribution. The ISP checks the batch documents — above all the certificate of analysis — against the registered product, and may require local quality analysis unless an exemption or validation of the origin laboratory’s control applies.
For new importers, the practical problem is sequencing: registration first, then the establishment authorisation, then the first lot. A container that arrives before the registration is granted will sit in a warehouse.
Language
Mandatory information in Spanish; a Spanish adhesive label on imported packs is the usual solution.
Content
Product name, purpose, ingredient list in INCI, batch number, net content, expiry date or storage indications where relevant, manufacturer or importer details.
Registration
The ISP registration number for registered cosmetics.
Special products
Sunscreens show the SPF and reapplication guidance; children’s products carry the statement that they are allowed for children under six.
Animal testing
Since January 2025 Law 21.646 bans animal testing for cosmetics and the sale, marketing, import and introduction on the Chilean market of cosmetics tested on animals; have the supplier certify compliance.
Household pesticides and disinfectants
Labels approved with the ISP registration under DS 157, in Spanish, with use and safety instructions.
Law and practice: DS 239/2002; DS 157/2007; Law 21.646 (in force 27 January 2025).
Household insecticides, rodenticides and similar products (plaguicidas de uso sanitario y doméstico) and disinfectants are registered product by product with the ISP under DS 157 of 2007 and Ministry of Health Circular 20 of 2008. The file includes legalised authorisations of the manufacturing site and warehouse, quality-control reports, stability, efficacy and toxicity studies and, for imports, a legalised certificate of free sale or export. Registration lasts five years.
Ordinary detergents and cleaning products need no product registration, but if a mixture is classified as hazardous it must carry GHS labels and come with a safety data sheet under Decree 57 of 2019, with the Chilean supplier’s name, address and phone on the label. Importers of hazardous substances above one tonne a year, including in mixtures, must also notify them to the Ministry of the Environment; the 2027 round is the first for substances in mixtures.
Law and practice: DS 157/2007; MINSAL Circular 20/2008; DS 57/2019.
Under the extended producer responsibility law (Law 20.920), the importer of packaged products is a producer of the packaging it places on the Chilean market. Household packaging collection targets have applied since September 2023: an importer of cosmetics or cleaning products must join a collective management system and report tonnages each year. Budget the fee into landed cost.
Paraguayan cosmetics, soaps and cleaning products enter Chile at 0% duty under ACE 35 with a certificate of origin. There is no sanitary equivalence: a product registered with Paraguay’s health authority still needs ISP registration or notification in Chile, a Chilean holder with a pharmacist, and per-lot import authorisations.
Holder
A Chilean distributor or a consultancy holds the registration; keep ownership terms clear in the distribution contract, since the registration is the market.
Free sale
Paraguayan certificate of free sale, apostilled.
Formula
Check ingredients against Chile’s lists before filing, especially preservatives and colourants.
Origin
Products made in Paraguay from imported bulk must meet the ACE 35 origin rule.
Cosmetic, special cosmetic, HBO, pesticide, disinfectant or ordinary cleaner — or a drug?
Chilean company with a pharmacist as technical director.
ISP registration, or HBO establishment authorisation and product notification.
Spanish, INCI, registration number, animal-testing compliance.
CDA and uso y disposición with a batch certificate of analysis.
Join a REP collective system for household packaging.
ChileAtiende — ISP cosmetic registration · DS 239/2002, Article 5 · US ITA — Chile cosmetics registration · ChemLinked — Chile cosmetic regulation · ChileAtiende — ISP registration of household pesticides · ChileAtiende — ISP registration of disinfectants · Pauta — Law 21.646 in force · ChileAtiende — notification of hazardous substances
Yes. Cosmetics need ISP sanitary registration per product under Decree 239, valid for five years. Hygiene and low-risk products follow a simplified route through an authorised importing establishment.
A company legally established in Chile with a pharmacist as technical director: a subsidiary, the distributor or a regulatory consultancy.
No. Cosmetics and cleaning products pay only the 6% duty (0% under agreements) and 19% VAT.
Ordinary detergents and cleaners do not. Household insecticides and disinfectants do, under Decree 157 of 2007; hazardous mixtures need GHS labels under Decree 57.
No. Law 21.646, in force since January 2025, bans the sale, marketing and import of cosmetics tested on animals.
A customs destination certificate (CDA) and an ISP authorisation of use and disposal, supported by a batch certificate of analysis.
No, with a valid ACE 35 certificate of origin, but they still need ISP registration or notification in Chile.
A flat 6%, mostly zero; broker rule and online sales.
Tariffs, VAT and border charges compared.
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