A CPNP notification: what it proves and what it does not
CPNP is often presented as a mark of quality. It is a notification, not a certificate, and the difference matters before you place an order.
CPNP comes up constantly in correspondence with Korean manufacturers, and almost always as an argument in a product's favour. It is a genuine argument, but not the one it is usually taken for. Worth sorting out early: it affects both the price and what you will be allowed to write on your own shelf.
What CPNP actually is
CPNP is the European portal for notifying cosmetic products. Before a product reaches the EU market, the responsible person submits its details through it: composition, category, manufacturer data, an emergency contact.
The key word is notification. Nobody grants an approval and nobody inspects the product before submission. The system receives the data and makes it available to poison centres.
What the notification really gives a buyer
It means the product has a responsible person in the EU and that a set of details has been filed. Indirectly it says the manufacturer has already been through European requirements and holds a safety assessment, without which a submission is not normally made.
For a buyer that is saved time. A product already notified takes less work than one starting from nothing. If you are assembling a first order, those are the sensible items to start from.
What it does not prove
It does not prove efficacy. Claims such as brightening or smoothing are not examined by CPNP at all.
It does not prove manufacturing quality. That is what ISO 22716 and a site audit are for, not a notification portal.
And it does not travel beyond the EU. Latin America, the Middle East and Asia each have their own procedure; the dossier filed for CPNP only makes preparing them easier.
What to request
A list of items with their CPNP reference numbers: every submission has one, and it can be checked.
The product safety report, if the manufacturer is prepared to pass it down the chain.
The name of the EU responsible person, and confirmation that it stays the same when the goods move through you.
And the direct question people forget to ask: was the notification filed against the current version of the formula, or an earlier one.