ISO STANDARDS IN COSMETICS: Which Ones Matter?

ISO stands for the International Organization for Standardization. It is an independent international organization that develops voluntary standards to ensure consistency, quality, safety, efficiency and compatibility across products, services and processes.

ISO standards are not, in themselves, cosmetic product legislation. However, they provide internationally recognized methods, guidelines and frameworks that can support product safety, quality, testing, manufacturing and claims substantiation.

For cosmetic companies, some ISO standards are particularly relevant.

🧴 ISO 22716 – Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP)

🦠 ISO 17516 – Microbiology

🧪 ISO 11930 – Challenge Testing

🔬 ISO 29621 – Microbiologically Low-Risk Products

🌿 ISO 16128 – Natural and Organic Cosmetic Ingredients

☀️ ISO 24444 – Sunscreen SPF in vivo

🌞 ISO 24443 – UVA Protection

🌅 ISO 23675 – Sunscreen SPF in vitro method

🔆 ISO 23698 – UVA in vitro HDRS method

💧 ISO 18861 – % of water resistance

🏊 ISO 16217 – Water immersion procedure for determining water resistance

Please note that following an ISO standard does not automatically mean that a cosmetic product complies with Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009. ISO standards are valuable tools, but they need to be applied in the context of the applicable cosmetic legislation and the specific product.