Cosmetics and cleaning products in Colombia need a mandatory sanitary notification under Andean Community law, not a registration. Here is who can hold it, how parallel importers join, the Andean cosmetics label in force since December 2024, the detergent limits, the taxes and why a Mercosur approval does not help a Paraguayan brand.
Colombia does not register cosmetics or household cleaning products the way it registers food or medicines. Under Andean Community law, shared with Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia, they need a mandatory sanitary notification (notificación sanitaria obligatoria, NSO): a sworn declaration filed with INVIMA, which assigns a code automatically when the file is complete and checks compliance afterwards in the market. An NSO is valid for seven years and must be held by a company domiciled in Colombia.
The details are where imports go wrong: the holder, parallel importers, the Andean labelling regulation for cosmetics in force since December 2024, and the phosphorus and biodegradability limits for detergents. This guide covers each; the general tariff and VAT rules are in our Colombia customs guide.
| Product | Rule | Authorisation |
|---|---|---|
| Cosmetics and personal care (make-up, skin and hair care, perfumes, deodorants, toothpaste) | Andean Decision 833 of 2018 | Notificación sanitaria obligatoria (NSO) from INVIMA, seven years |
| Household hygiene (detergents, dishwashing products, softeners, air fresheners, bleach, disinfectants, surface cleaners) | Andean Decision 706 of 2008 | NSO from INVIMA, at least seven years |
| Absorbent hygiene (sanitary pads, nappies, tampons) without cosmetic or therapeutic claims | Andean Decision 706 of 2008 | NSO from INVIMA |
| Soaps and detergents (all uses) | Resolution 689 of 2016 | Phosphorus and biodegradability limits; supplier’s declaration of conformity before import |
Household insecticides and other pesticides for home use are not hygiene products: they follow the pesticide rules and need their own authorisation. Products with therapeutic claims — medicated shampoos, antiseptics presented as medicines — may fall under the medicines regime. Classification is the first decision, and INVIMA’s view prevails.
Law and practice: Andean Decisions 833/2018 and 706/2008 (amended by Decisions 783 and 784 of 2013 and 908 of 2022); Resolution 689/2016.
Decision 833, which replaced the earlier Andean cosmetics rules, sets a common procedure. The applicant files INVIMA’s form with a sworn declaration, the qualitative formula with INCI names, specifications, the label draft and the batch coding system; if the file is complete INVIMA assigns the code and issues an automatic certificate. In 2026 INVIMA charges 292.83 UVB (about COP 3.5 million at the 2026 UVB of COP 12,110) to assign an NSO code through its InvimÁgil platform and 306.30 UVB to recognise a code issued in another Andean country.
Holder
One holder per NSO, legally domiciled in Colombia; a foreign manufacturer acts through a Colombian company.
Validity
Seven years, renewable under the same code before expiry; a lapsed code cannot be reassigned, though stock may be sold for 12 months.
Parallel importers
Other importers of the same product join the existing code (importador paralelo) and put their own name and address on the label.
Andean recognition
A code from Peru, Ecuador or Bolivia can be recognised in Colombia with a certified copy and the technical file.
For products made outside the Andean Community the holder must ensure the foreign manufacturer follows good manufacturing practices, and importers must follow good storage practices. Changes to the formula or label must be reported before the changed product is sold.
Law and practice: Decision 833/2018, arts. 6–11, 18–19 and 50–53; INVIMA cosmetics guide; INVIMA Resolution 2026033499 of 30 June 2026 (fees).
Since 16 December 2024 cosmetic labels follow the Andean Technical Regulation for the Labelling of Cosmetic Products (Resolution 2310 of 2022). The label must show:
Product
Name, generic name, brand, cosmetic group where applicable and nominal content.
Responsibility
Name of the NSO holder or importer and country of origin.
Code and lot
The NSO code with the issuing country, and the lot number.
Ingredients
INCI list preceded by “ingredientes”, in descending order of weight.
Use
Instructions, storage conditions, precautions and warnings; expiry date if shelf life is 24 months or less.
The generic name, precautions, instructions, storage conditions and warnings must be in Spanish. Imported products may carry a complementary sticker, firmly attached and notified to INVIMA with the NSO, but it cannot carry the lot number, hide the product name or correct errors on the original label. Cosmetics may not claim therapeutic effects.
Law and practice: Andean Resolution 2310/2022, arts. 4–5.
Household hygiene and absorbent products follow a parallel Andean regime under Decision 706: an NSO with INVIMA, valid for at least seven years and renewable in the 60 days before expiry, filed by a party established in the Andean Community. Labels must show the trade name and brand, manufacturer, NSO holder or importer, country of origin, net content, precautions and use conditions, lot, NSO code and basic qualitative composition; imported products must at least translate precautions, warnings and use and storage conditions into Spanish, and the NSO code and holder data can be added by label.
Soaps and detergents, whether for domestic, cosmetic or industrial use, also face a technical regulation on phosphorus and biodegradability. Since January 2018 phosphorus is limited to 0.65% (1.5% as P2O5), and surfactants must meet minimum ultimate biodegradability measured by OECD or equivalent methods. Before import, the importer issues a first-party declaration of conformity under ISO/IEC 17050, backed by laboratory reports. Industrial products must also be reported to ANLA, the environmental licensing authority, through its VITAL system.
Law and practice: Decision 706/2008, arts. 7, 18–21; Resolution 689/2016, arts. 5–9, as amended by Resolutions 837/2017 and 1770/2018.
| Charge | Rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Customs duty | 15% on perfumes (3303), make-up and skin care (3304), hair lacquers and other hair products, soap (3401) and retail detergents (3402.50); 5% on shampoos (3305.10) and perm preparations | Preferential under trade agreements, including ACE 72 |
| VAT | 19% | Sanitary pads, tampons and menstrual cups are outside VAT following Constitutional Court rulings |
| Excise | None specific to cosmetics or cleaning products | — |
| Plastic packaging tax | 0.00005 UVT per gram of single-use plastic packaging (about COP 2.62 per gram in 2026) | Reaches the packaging of imported goods; declared annually |
Cosmetics and cleaning products carry no excise in Colombia. VAT is 19% and recoverable for a registered importer; the exception is menstrual products, which the Constitutional Court took out of VAT in rulings of 2018 and 2021. The real cost of a non-agreement product is the duty, so origin is the first thing to check:
| CIF US$100,000 | Make-up or soap, non-agreement origin (15%) | Shampoo, non-agreement origin (5%) | Paraguayan origin, full ACE 72 preference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duty | 15,000 | 5,000 | 0 |
| VAT 19% on CIF + duty | 21,850 | 19,950 | 19,000 |
| Total at clearance | 36,850 | 24,950 | 19,000 |
| Of which pure cost for a VAT-registered importer | 15,000 | 5,000 | 0 |
Shampoo is the odd line out at 5%, so a hair-care range costs less to land than make-up from the same supplier. The single-use plastic packaging tax is small per unit but now reaches the packaging of imported goods following Constitutional Court ruling C-099 of 2025; the importer declares it once a year, and certified circular-economy plastic is excluded. Ask your supplier for the grams of plastic per unit.
Law and practice: Decree 1881/2021 (customs tariff), chapters 33–34, as compiled by DIAN; Tax Statute art. 468; Constitutional Court rulings C-117/2018 and C-102/2021; Law 2277/2022 and ruling C-099/2025 (single-use plastic packaging tax); UVT 2026 COP 52,374.
Paraguayan cosmetics and cleaning products enter Colombia under ACE 72 with a certificate of origin; most lines carry a full preference. The sanitary side is a different matter: a Paraguayan registration with DINAVISA or a Mercosur approval is not recognised in Colombia, because Andean recognition works only between Andean Community members. A Paraguayan manufacturer needs a Colombian NSO holder — its own subsidiary or its distributor — and must be able to show good manufacturing practices.
If a Peruvian or Ecuadorian distributor already holds an NSO for the product, the Colombian launch can use Andean recognition instead of a new file. For a Paraguayan brand planning the region, the order of filing matters.
Law and practice: ACE 72; Decision 833/2018, art. 19.
Cosmetic, household hygiene, absorbent, detergent, pesticide or medicine.
A Colombian company; decide how parallel importers will join.
Formula with INCI names, specifications, label, GMP evidence.
Phosphorus and biodegradability reports; declaration of conformity before import.
Andean Resolution 2310 for cosmetics, Decision 706 for household products; Spanish.
ACE 72 or other agreement certificate to remove the duty.
Decree 1881/2021, customs tariff (DIAN) · INVIMA Resolution 2026033499 (NSO fees) · CR Consultores: plastic packaging tax on imports · Andean Decision 833 (OAS SICE) · Andean Resolution 2310/2022 · INVIMA cosmetics guide · Andean Decision 706 · Resolution 689/2016 · Constitutional Court C-102/21
No registration in the strict sense: they need a mandatory sanitary notification (NSO) with INVIMA under Andean Decision 833, assigned automatically on a complete file and valid for seven years.
No. The holder must be legally domiciled in Colombia, so a foreign manufacturer acts through a subsidiary or distributor.
A company that imports a product already covered by another holder’s NSO and joins that code, adding its own name and address to the label.
It can be recognised in Colombia with a certified copy and the technical file, under Andean recognition. Mercosur approvals are not recognised.
Andean Resolution 2310/2022, in force since December 2024: INCI ingredients, NSO code, holder or importer, warnings in Spanish. Stickers are allowed but not for the lot number.
Household hygiene products need an NSO under Andean Decision 706, and detergents must meet phosphorus and biodegradability limits with a declaration of conformity before import.
No. Imports pay duty — 15% on most cosmetics and soaps, 5% on shampoo, outside agreements — and 19% VAT; menstrual products are outside VAT.
Tariff, 19% VAT, ACE 72 and the new penalty law.
Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador compared.
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