Southeast Asia
Manufacturing in Korea for the Vietnamese Market
Vietnam is the fastest-moving of the Southeast Asian markets for Korean skincare, and its notification system is comparatively light. The friction is documentary rather than technical — legalisation and authorisation paperwork is what delays launches here.
The framework
- Regulator
- Drug Administration of Vietnam, Ministry of Health
- Governing law
- ASEAN Cosmetic Directive as implemented in Vietnamese law
- Before you can sell
- Cosmetic product notification before import and sale.
- Must be established locally
- A Vietnamese entity holding the notification and importing the product.
- Sunscreen is
- A cosmetic, subject to the ASEAN permitted UV filter list.
From formula to first shipment.
- 01
Check the formula against the ASEAN annexes
Vietnam applies the ASEAN Cosmetic Directive, so the prohibited, restricted, colourant, preservative and UV filter lists are the ASEAN ones. They resemble the EU lists closely but are not identical, and the differences are where problems arise.
- 02
Appoint the local notification holder
The notification is filed by a Vietnamese entity — usually the importer or distributor — which then holds it. This ties your market access to that relationship, so the commercial agreement and the notification should be negotiated together.
- 03
Obtain a legalised Certificate of Free Sale
A Certificate of Free Sale issued in Korea, legalised for use in Vietnam, is normally required. Legalisation runs on its own timetable and is a common cause of delay when it is started late.
- 04
Issue a Power of Attorney
A Power of Attorney authorising the local entity to file the notification, executed and legalised in the required form.
- 05
File the notification
Filing covers the product identity, formulation frame and intended claims. Notifications are valid for a defined period and renew rather than lasting indefinitely.
- 06
Prepare compliant labelling
Vietnamese language content is required, commonly applied as a supplementary label, alongside importer details, origin and the ingredient declaration.
What catches brands out here.
Your notification lives with your local partner
Because the notification is held by the Vietnamese entity, changing distributor can mean re-notifying. Agree in writing what happens to the notification if the relationship ends — this is the single most valuable thing to negotiate before launch.
Legalisation takes longer than the notification
The Certificate of Free Sale and Power of Attorney have to be issued, notarised and legalised. Brands consistently underestimate this and it is usually the critical path, not the filing itself.
Claims are reviewed against the ASEAN claim guidelines
Therapeutic and exaggerated claims are refused. The ASEAN guidelines are less prescriptive than the EU criteria but are actively applied, and a rejected claim means re-filing.
Counterfeiting is a live commercial risk
Korean skincare is widely counterfeited in the region. Packaging with verification features and a controlled distribution agreement are worth specifying at development rather than adding later.
We document. Your local entity registers.
- Full quantitative formula and specification sheets
- Certificate of Free Sale application support and manufacturing statements
- Certificates of analysis by batch
- Stability and challenge test reports
- Artwork files suitable for supplementary labelling
- The Vietnamese notification holder and importer
- Legalisation of the Certificate of Free Sale and Power of Attorney
- Notification filing and renewal
- Vietnamese-language labelling
Manufacturing through contracted Korean partners, matched to your product — every order made in Korea. Certifications depend on the selected manufacturing partner and project requirements.
Why this market
Vietnam has a young, urbanising consumer base with high engagement in Korean beauty culture, and skincare penetration is still rising rather than plateauing.
Social commerce and livestream selling dominate discovery, which favours brands prepared to support local sellers with content rather than only with stock.
Price sensitivity is real but tiered: there is an established premium segment alongside a much larger mass one, and a brand should pick which it is entering.
Selling in Vietnam
Can we hold the Vietnamese notification ourselves?
The notification is filed and held by a Vietnamese entity, in practice your importer or distributor. Because switching partners can mean re-notifying, agree in advance what happens to the notification if the relationship ends, and put it in the distribution contract.
What is a Certificate of Free Sale and who issues it?
It is a document confirming the product is freely sold in its country of origin. For Korean-made cosmetics it is issued in Korea and then legalised for use in Vietnam. We support the manufacturing-side application; the legalisation timetable sits with you and your partner and should be started early.
Are ASEAN ingredient rules the same as the EU’s?
Close but not identical. The ASEAN Cosmetic Directive follows the EU structure of prohibited, restricted and positive lists, and most entries match. The differences are precisely where a compliance issue would arise, so the ASEAN annexes should be checked directly.
Sources
- Drug Administration of Vietnam — cosmetics administration — Ministry of Health, Socialist Republic of Vietnam
- ASEAN Cosmetic Directive and harmonised cosmetic regulatory scheme — Association of Southeast Asian Nations
- Cosmetic Regulatory Framework in Korea — Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, Republic of Korea
Requirements differ by market and by product, and they keep changing. Cross-check the current position as your project moves, and confirm it with a qualified regulatory consultant in Vietnam before committing to a formula or a launch date. We review these pages against the sources above as the rules move.
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What’s Next in Beauty.
Tell us you are selling into Vietnam at the brief stage rather than after. It changes the formula, not just the label.
Start Your Project →This page is general information for manufacturing planning. It is not legal or regulatory advice, it has no legal effect, and no rights can be derived from it. Requirements change by market and over time — before acting on anything here, confirm the current position with the authority concerned or with qualified counsel.