How do I export body lotion or shower gel to China?

Body lotion and shower gel are usually exported to China as ordinary cosmetics: lotion as a moisturizing or skin-care product and shower gel as a rinse-off cleaner. For general-trade import of a finished product, complete the required filing or registration before import, appoint a Domestic Responsible Person, and apply a Chinese label that meets the Cosmetics Labeling Rules. Customs and inspection-quarantine formalities are a separate process. Cross-border e-commerce retail import is a different channel with list, platform and personal-use limits; it is not a blanket “no filing” rule and not a path to unrestricted domestic resale. Testing and ordinary cosmetics filing may proceed in parallel. The ordinary filing cycle is about 10–20 days in total, depending on completeness and supplementary requests. That timing applies only to ordinary cosmetics filing, never to special cosmetics registration and not as a guaranteed import timeline. A body lotion with SPF must be registered as a sunscreen. A body-whitening lotion must be registered as a whitening special cosmetic. A shower gel that claims to disinfect or kill bacteria as its purpose may leave the cosmetic category.

Published 11 November 2026 · Updated 11 November 2026

How to judge the path

Code the action site as body or whole-body skin as claimed, excluding sites the classification notes do not allow for that efficacy.

See bath products and bar soap for related rinse-off formats.

Typical documents, tests and labels

Prepare an ordinary filing dossier and a safety assessment that matches rinse-off or leave-on exposure. Jinshang Testing organizes the compliance work. Testing is coordinated with partner laboratories, and those laboratories issue the reports they perform. After a record is issued, check it on the official NMPA filing query https://hzpba.nmpa.gov.cn/gccx/ and the NMPA data-search page https://datasearch.nmpa.gov.cn/datasearch/home-index.html#category=hzp.

Cautions

Children’s body lotions and washes must stay inside the permitted children’s claim list and meet children’s-cosmetics rules.

Questions we are often asked

Is a body butter filed like a lotion?

Yes, as an ordinary moisturizing cosmetic if that is the function. Describe the dosage form accurately.

Can a shower gel claim to treat body acne with antiseptic action?

Anti-acne cosmetic claims must stay inside the listed definition. Antiseptic or disinfectant purpose points away from cosmetics.

Next step

Discuss your China market path

Tell us whether you plan to import finished goods or manufacture in mainland China, and what the product claims. We will outline the likely filing or registration path. Testing, where needed, is arranged with partner laboratories.