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Which registration do you need?

Tick everything you plan to do; most brands tick more than one. The route on the right redraws as you go, with the article behind each step.

What will you do with the product?

A Korean factory makes it for me, and I sell it under my brandThe OEM/ODM model. The factory’s own registration does not cover you.
I make it myself, in my own workshop or plantIncluding filling into the bottle. Printing labels or boxing alone is not manufacturing.
I import finished cosmetics to sell in KoreaPerfume, skincare or make-up made abroad, cleared through Korean customs.
I sell to Korean shoppers online and ship from abroad, as a purchase agentOften called 구매대행: the shopper buys, you arrange it, the parcel comes from overseas.
I decant or blend for customers: perfume vials, custom serumsSplitting a bottle into smaller ones counts, even without adding anything.
I only resell sealed products bought from a registered Korean companyUnopened, unchanged, with the original Korean label.

Where will you sell it?

I sell to consumers online (my own shop, Smart Store, Coupang, Instagram)Online selling to consumers is a separate report under a different law.

Your route

Register as a cosmetics manufacturer화장품제조업 등록Apply to the regional MFDS office for the area where the plant is, with a facility statement and the medical certificates the rule asks of the owner. The plant must meet the facility standards.Cosmetics Act art. 3(1)(2); Enforcement Rule art. 3(2)
Register as a Responsible Cosmetic Distributor화장품책임판매업 등록This is the company whose name sits on the label and answers for quality and safety. Apply to the regional MFDS office for your business address, attaching your quality-control and post-sale safety standards and proof that your Responsible Sales Manager qualifies.Cosmetics Act arts. 2(11), 3(1)(3); Decree art. 2(2); Rule art. 4(2); MFDS interpretation of 24 Feb 2026
Register as a Responsible Cosmetic Distributor, e-commerce agency type화장품책임판매업 등록(수입대행형)The decree lists arranging cosmetics for online purchase-agency deals as its own type of Responsible Cosmetic Distributor. For this type the rule asks for no attached standards and no Responsible Sales Manager, and applies a shorter list of duties.Decree art. 2(2)(d); Rule arts. 4(2), 8(1), 12
Report a customised-cosmetics shop맞춤형화장품판매업 신고Decanting or mixing for sale makes the product a customised cosmetic. Report the shop to the regional MFDS office with a copy of your certified mixer’s licence (맞춤형화장품조제관리사) and a facility statement; keep the mixing area separated from the rest of the shop.Cosmetics Act arts. 2(3-2), 3-2; Rule arts. 8-2, 8-4
No MFDS business registration for plain resale식약처 영업 등록 대상 아님Selling sealed, unchanged products bought from a registered company is not one of the three business types the Act lists. This is our reading of the Act, not an MFDS ruling. You still show the consumer price on what you sell.Cosmetics Act arts. 2-2, 11(1); Decree art. 2
Report as a mail-order business통신판매업 신고Selling to consumers online is mail-order under the E-Commerce Act: report it to the local government (or the Fair Trade Commission). A notice exempts very small sellers; we could not open its current text, so check it before relying on it.E-Commerce Act art. 12(1)

Report the ingredient list of each product before it goes on sale, and the past year’s production or import volume by the end of February, through the industry association.Rule art. 13(1)(2)
Importers who file the electronic standard customs pre-report may skip the separate import-volume and ingredient-list reports.Rule art. 13(3)
Your Responsible Sales Manager or certified mixer takes MFDS-set training within six months of starting, then once a year.Rule art. 14(1)
Mix or decant only after checking the customer’s skin type or preference, never in advance for stock; log batch number, use-by date, sale date and quantity; explain the contents and cautions.Rule art. 12-2; MFDS interpretation of 24 Apr 2026
Decant only from contents supplied for that purpose, not from finished products another company made to sell to consumers as they are.Cosmetics Act art. 5(3); MFDS interpretation of 24 Apr 2026
Report every ingredient used in the past year’s customised products by the end of February.Rule art. 13(4)

Before you file

A Responsible Cosmetic Distributor cannot register without a Responsible Sales Manager who meets the rule. That is the step that holds most founders up, so it has its own check.

Run the manager check