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KRKorean with some English namesOfficial records available

South Korea cosmetic ingredient regulations

The Korean source remains canonical; English-only material is incomplete.

Regulator
Ministry of Food and Drug Safety
Source language
Korean with some English names
Coverage version
MFDS Notice 2026-19, effective 18 March 2026

What this list is

South Korea's cosmetic ingredient rules are published by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in Korean. The English material that circulates is partial, and the gaps are not marked.

  • 1,320 Korean records: 1,077 prohibited, 243 restricted.
  • The regulator is the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, under the Cosmetics Act.
  • The Korean text is canonical; English versions are incomplete rather than merely later.
  • Functional cosmetics — sunscreen, whitening, anti-wrinkle and others — carry a separate reporting or approval route.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety maintains the prohibited and restricted ingredient lists under the Cosmetics Act, and publishes them in Korean. This matters more than the usual caution about translations. The English material in circulation is not a delayed version of the Korean; it is a subset, and nothing in it indicates which entries were left out.

The second thing to know is that Korea separates ordinary cosmetics from functional cosmetics. A product claiming sun protection, skin whitening, anti-wrinkle action, hair loss relief and several other functions falls into the functional category, which carries its own reporting or approval requirement and its own constraints on ingredients and concentrations. A formula that is unremarkable as a cosmetic can move into that category on the strength of a single claim.

The 1,320 records here come from the Korean source. Where a substance has no Korean record, that is the absence of an entry we could resolve, not a finding about the substance.

Checked against

Official ingredient records

1320 matching records
ProhibitedBinding ruleNo English translationOfficial-source import checked

하이드록시에칠-3,4-메칠렌디옥시아닐린 하이드로클로라이드 및 그 염류(예 : 하이드록시에칠-3,4-메칠렌디옥시아닐린 하이드로클로라이드)1)

CAS 94158-14-2 · EC 303-085-5

Listed by the Korean MFDS as a substance that may not be used in cosmetics.

Conditions: 하이드록시에칠-3,4-메칠렌디옥시아닐린하이드로클로라이드

Source:화장품 안전기준 등에 관한 규정, 별표 1, record 1-1223 · version 2026-19 · effective March 18, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

View full recordIngredient profile
RestrictedBinding ruleNo English translationOfficial-source import checked

하이드록시에칠-3,4-메칠렌디옥시아닐린 하이드로클로라이드 및그 염류

CAS 94158-14-2 · EC 303-085-5

Listed by the Korean MFDS as a cosmetic ingredient requiring conditions of use.

Conditions: 산화염모제에 1.5% · 기타제품에는 사용금지 · 하이드록시에칠-3,4-메칠렌디옥시아닐린하이드로클로라이드

Source:화장품 안전기준 등에 관한 규정, 별표 2, record 2-244 · version 2026-19 · effective March 18, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

View full recordIngredient profile
RestrictedBinding ruleNo English translationOfficial-source import checked

하이드롤라이즈드밀단백질

CAS 94350-06-8; 222400-28-4

Listed by the Korean MFDS as a cosmetic ingredient requiring conditions of use.

Conditions: 원료 중 펩타이드의 최대 평균분자량 은 3.5 kDa 이하이어야 함 · Proteinhydrolyzates, wheatgermProteinhydrolyzates, wheat

Source:화장품 안전기준 등에 관한 규정, 별표 2, record 2-406 · version 2026-19 · effective March 18, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

View full recordIngredient profile
ProhibitedBinding ruleNo English translationOfficial-source import checked

항히스타민제(예 : 독실아민, 디페닐피랄린, 디펜히드라민, 메타피릴렌, 브롬페니라민, 사이클리진, 클로르페녹사민, 트리펠렌아민, 히드록사진 등)

CAS 469-21-6; 147-20-6; 58-73-1

Listed by the Korean MFDS as a substance that may not be used in cosmetics.

Conditions: 독실아민디페닐피랄린디펜히드라민

Source:화장품 안전기준 등에 관한 규정, 별표 1, record 1-1248 · version 2026-19 · effective March 18, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

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RestrictedBinding ruleNo English translationOfficial-source import checked

헥사미딘(1,6-디(4-아미디노페녹시)-n-헥산) 및 그 염류(이세치오네이트 및 p-하이드록시벤조에이트)

CAS 3811-75-4; 659-40-5; 93841-83-9

Listed by the Korean MFDS as a cosmetic ingredient requiring conditions of use.

Conditions: 헥사미딘으로서 0.1% · 헥사미딘헥사미딘디이세티오네이트헥사미딘디p-하이드록시벤조에이트

Source:화장품 안전기준 등에 관한 규정, 별표 2, record 2-136 · version 2026-19 · effective March 18, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

View full recordIngredient profile
ProhibitedBinding ruleNo English translationOfficial-source import checked

형광증백제(다만, FluorescentBrightener 367은 손발톱용 제품류 중베이스코트, 언더코트, 네일폴리시, 네일에나멜, 탑코트에 0.12% 이하일 경우는 제외)

Listed by the Korean MFDS as a substance that may not be used in cosmetics.

Source:화장품 안전기준 등에 관한 규정, 별표 1, record 1-1198 · version 2026-19 · effective March 18, 2026 · source checked 2026-08-30

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Market coverage contract

Complete current appendix dataset
Included scope
All rows in official Appendix 1 (prohibited) and Appendix 2 (restricted) of the Safety Standards for Cosmetics.
If no match is found
Korean source wording is canonical and other positive lists/notices may still apply to the formulation.

Complete verification checklist

  1. Match the Korean canonical substance name and identifiers.
  2. Review all Appendix 1 and 2 matches and conditions.
  3. Check functional-cosmetic and positive-list requirements where applicable.
  4. Confirm current MFDS notice, responsible seller and label obligations.

Official sources and legal role

South Korea MFDS cosmetic ingredient data

Ingredient identity and separate restriction/regulation data endpoints

Legal meaning: Korean source is canonical; English materials alone are not complete enough for certification

Available language: Korean with English names and CAS fields

What this market page can answer

Source and authority

Identify the official material and the regulator responsible for it: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.

Language and scope

See whether usable English or bilingual material exists and what the mapped source actually covers. Current source language: Korean with some English names.

Evidence status

Browse ingredient-level records imported from official sources. Each row states whether it passed deterministic source checks or human editorial review.

How to verify an ingredient for this market

  1. Search the ingredient by INCI name, CAS number or EC number and record the exact identity.
  2. Open each official source above and check the current version, product scope, concentration limits and required warnings.
  3. Confirm effective dates and whether an English text is official, reviewed or only contextual.
  4. Treat a missing local match as unknown, never as permission or a safety conclusion.
Screen an INCI listSearch ingredientsReview source methodology