The International Cosmetics Congress organized by Business France and Cosmed in December 2015 was dedicated to export to Middle Eastern countries, starting with the largest of all, Saudi Arabia, whose regulations in this sector was presented by the SGS Group, specialized in the inspection, verification, testing, and certification of products.
Following the presentation of the country and its market by Pascal Roger, Director of Business France offices in Saudi Arabia (see our article on this topic ), the next conference also focused on Saudi Arabia, and in particular on its regulatory aspects.
The cosmetics sector is currently regulated by standard GSO 1943:2009, but is about to be replaced by standard GSO 1943:2014.
The definition of a cosmetic product is very similar to that in the European regulation:
'
Any substance or preparation intended to be placed in contact with the various external parts of human body (epidermis, hair system, nails, lips, and external genital organs) or with the teeth and the mucous membranes of the oral cavity with a view exclusively or mainly to cleaning them, perfuming them, changing their appearance and/or correcting body odours and/or protecting them or keeping them in good condition.'
However, there
is
one difference, as it includes a specific definition for borderline products:
'products which are difficult to determine whether they are considered as drugs, medical device, herbal or health products are called borderline products.'
These products are assessed by the classification committee in the drug sector to identify their category or classification, and the …
