European Union + United Kingdom · Regulatory comparison checked August 25, 2026
CPNP vs SCPN is a jurisdiction choice, not a choice between two versions of the same certificate. Use the EU Cosmetic Products Notification Portal (CPNP) for cosmetics placed on the EU market and, under the current Northern Ireland regime, for products placed on the Northern Ireland market. Use the UK Submit Cosmetic Product Notifications service (SCPN) before placing a cosmetic product on the market in Great Britain—England, Scotland and Wales. If the same product is supplied in both regimes, plan for both notification routes and check that the responsible-person setup works for each territory.
JurisdictionMulti-jurisdictionEuropean UnionUnited KingdomEuropean Union + United Kingdom
CPNP vs SCPN at a glance
| Question | CPNP | SCPN |
|---|---|---|
| Where is it used? | European Union; Northern Ireland follows the EU cosmetics regime | Great Britain: England, Scotland and Wales |
| Who normally submits? | The responsible person; distributors notify in specific labelling-translation circumstances | The UK-established responsible person for the GB product |
| When? | Before the product is placed on the applicable market | Before the product is made available on the GB market |
| Where does the information go? | European Commission portal; Article 13 makes the information available to competent authorities and, for medical treatment purposes, to poison centres | Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) |
| Does it replace the CPSR or PIF? | No | No |
| Is it product approval? | No. It is a notification record. | No. It is a notification record. |
Do not treat a portal submission as a compliance certificate. A notification is not an approval, a licence, a registration certificate, a safety certification or a marketplace clearance. It does not prove that the formula is lawful, the safety assessment is adequate, the label is correct, or that a marketplace will accept the listing. Those checks remain part of the responsible person’s wider compliance duties.
Choose the portal by the market where the product is supplied
European Union
Use CPNP
The EU responsible person submits the Article 13 notification before the cosmetic product is placed on the EU market. One CPNP notification removes the need for a separate national cosmetic notification within each EU country, although other national rules may still apply.
Great Britain
Use SCPN
The UK-established responsible person submits product information to OPSS before the product is made available in England, Scotland or Wales. The GB route is separate from the EU portal.
Northern Ireland
Use CPNP, then check any GB movement separately
Northern Ireland aligns with the EU cosmetics rules under the Windsor Framework. The responsible person must be established in Northern Ireland or the EEA, and cosmetics placed on the NI market are notified through CPNP. If the product is also placed on the GB market, current UK guidance describes a separate SCPN notification requirement, including specific treatment for qualifying Northern Ireland goods.
If you sell in both EU/Northern Ireland and Great Britain
Do not assume that one portal record transfers automatically to the other. A brand supplying the same cosmetic product into the EU or Northern Ireland and into Great Britain generally needs to satisfy each regime separately:
- Define the territories. List where the product will actually be placed on the market: EU member states, Northern Ireland, Great Britain, or a combination.
- Confirm the responsible person for each route. The EU regime requires an EU-established responsible person; Northern Ireland guidance allows an NI- or EEA-established responsible person; GB guidance requires a UK-established responsible person.
- Complete the safety and file work first. The notification is only one step. The responsible person must ensure the safety assessment and Cosmetic Product Safety Report (CPSR) are complete and the Product Information File (PIF) is maintained.
- Submit through the correct portal. Use CPNP for the EU/NI route and SCPN for the GB route before market placement.
- Keep records aligned. Product names, formula information, label images, responsible-person details and packaging should describe the same current product in each system.
- Update changes. A new responsible person, formula, label or other notified detail may require the notification record—and sometimes the supporting safety documentation—to be updated.
Northern Ireland needs a case-specific check when goods move into Great Britain. UK guidance says qualifying Northern Ireland goods may move to the rest of the UK without additional approval, but it also requires the relevant information to be notified to the GB regulator. Do not convert “unfettered access” into “no SCPN action” without checking the product and supply route.
What information the portals collect
The two systems serve similar safety and market-surveillance purposes, but they are separate legal records. The exact service screens can change, so use the current portal instructions when filing. For related background across this cluster, see our other compliance guides.
| Information area | CPNP basis | SCPN guidance |
|---|---|---|
| Product identity | Category and product name or names | Category and product name |
| Responsible person and file location | Responsible-person name and address where the PIF is accessible | Responsible-person name and where the PIF is kept |
| Urgent contact | Contact details of a physical person in case of necessity | Named contact for urgent enquiries |
| Formula and restricted-substance details | Frame formulation; applicable nanomaterial and category 1A/1B CMR details | Ingredient summary, chemical details, nanomaterial details and applicable CMR details |
| Label and packaging | Original labelling and, where reasonably legible, a packaging photograph when the product is placed on the market | Label image and photograph of the product packaging |
| Jurisdiction record | Country of origin for imports and the member state of market placement | UK responsible-person identity and the location where the PIF is kept |
For CPNP, Article 13 also creates a narrow distributor notification duty when a distributor translates labelling on its own initiative for another member state. That is not a general rule that every reseller files its own CPNP record.
Nanomaterials need an additional check
The ordinary product notification is not necessarily the only portal action. Under EU Article 16, cosmetics containing nanomaterials are subject to an additional notification, generally six months before market placement, with stated exceptions. The Commission’s CPNP page describes a separate Article 16 module in addition to the Article 13 notification.
GB guidance similarly states that products containing relevant novel nanomaterials generally require advance notification through SCPN. Do not apply the six-month statement mechanically to every ingredient labelled “nano”: the law contains exclusions and substance-specific conditions. Confirm the ingredient status against the current rules.
Notification is not the whole cosmetics compliance file
CPSR
Safety conclusion and evidence
The safety assessment must be completed before market placement, and the CPSR forms part of the PIF. A portal receipt is not a substitute for the qualified assessor’s work.
PIF
The maintained product file
The PIF contains the CPSR plus product, manufacturing, claims and other required information. Both EU and GB regimes require it to remain accessible and current.
Responsible person
The accountable legal actor
The responsible person ensures the applicable obligations are met and keeps the record current. See our guide to the EU Responsible Person vs CPSR.
Marketplace listing
A separate platform decision
A marketplace may request labels, responsible-person details or other evidence and can still reject a listing. Completing a notification does not oblige any platform to approve a listing. For one platform-specific workflow, see TikTok Shop EU cosmetics compliance.
A practical pre-notification check
- Freeze the formula, product identity and intended use that the safety assessor will evaluate.
- Complete the CPSR and assemble the PIF for the correct jurisdiction.
- Confirm the responsible-person entity and address for every target market.
- Finalize compliant labels and packaging images before copying details into a portal.
- Use the same product name and version across the PIF, CPSR, label and notification.
- Save submission evidence and maintain a change log for formulas, labels, contacts and market territories.
Comparing providers for the full notification route
If you need more than a portal filing, compare services that may cover responsible-person support, safety assessment, PIF preparation and notification. Check the quoted scope carefully: these are separate deliverables.
Frequently asked questions
Is CPNP the same as SCPN?
No. CPNP is the European Commission’s cosmetic-product notification portal used for the EU regime and, under current UK guidance, Northern Ireland. SCPN is the UK service for cosmetics placed on the Great Britain market.
Do I need both CPNP and SCPN?
If the same product is placed on both the EU/NI market and the GB market, you generally need to satisfy both notification regimes. Confirm the responsible-person setup and the special rules for qualifying Northern Ireland goods before filing.
Does a CPNP or SCPN number mean the product is approved?
No. Notification provides information to the relevant authorities. It is not a government approval, safety certificate, marketplace approval or substitute for the CPSR and PIF.
Can I file before the CPSR is complete?
The safety assessment and CPSR are pre-market obligations, and the notification must describe the product being placed on the market. The safer production sequence is to finalize the product and safety file before submitting the matching notification.
Who submits the notification?
The responsible person normally submits it. EU law also creates a specific CPNP duty for a distributor that translates labelling on its own initiative for another member state. That limited rule should not be treated as a general reseller-filing obligation.
Do product changes require an update?
Yes, notified information must remain current. EU Article 13 requires updates without delay when covered information changes. For GB, keep SCPN details aligned with the current product and responsible-person record and follow the live service instructions.
Primary sources
- EUR-Lex — Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, consolidated text dated May 1, 2026
- European Commission — Cosmetic Product Notification Portal (CPNP)
- GOV.UK — Submit a cosmetic product notification
- GOV.UK — Submit Cosmetic Product Notifications service
- GOV.UK — How to notify nanomaterials (SCPN)
- GOV.UK — Making cosmetic products available in Great Britain
- OPSS — Cosmetics regulations guidance for Great Britain
- OPSS — Cosmetics regulations guidance for Northern Ireland
Disclaimer: XrdaGrid provides research and comparison information, not legal advice. Cosmetics rules, portal fields and marketplace evidence requests can change. Verify the current official requirements for the product, responsible person and destination market before filing or selling.