Regulatory Expertise
Brexit Transition
Operating across the post-Brexit divide: two Responsible Persons, two notifications, and a UK and EU rulebook that is steadily diverging. We hold both sides under one quality system.
Since the end of the transition period the UK and EU have run separate cosmetic regimes, and a brand selling on both sides of the Channel now has to satisfy both. They started from the same text and are slowly drifting apart.
Two of everything
Selling in Great Britain and the EU means a UK Responsible Person established in GB and a separate EU Responsible Person established in the Union; one entity cannot be both. It means two notifications, the SCPN in the UK and the CPNP in the EU, and labelling that carries the correct Responsible Person for each market. Northern Ireland follows the EU regime, which is a point brands selling UK-wide regularly miss.
A widening gap
The two rulebooks no longer move in step. Great Britain’s 2026 amendment, SI 2026/23, bans the UV filter 4-MBC and a set of CMR substances and lowers the formaldehyde-releaser labelling threshold, all on GB-specific dates, while the EU has expanded its fragrance allergen labelling under Regulation (EU) 2023/1545, which GB has not adopted. The rulebooks are diverging in both directions at once, so a formulation and a label that comply in one market are not automatically compliant in the other. We set both out in our UK 2026 restricted substances and EU fragrance allergen references. We act as both your UK and EU Responsible Person under a single quality management system, which is the cleanest way to keep one product lawful in both markets as they diverge.
Relevant services
Responsible Person
From £149 · per product, per year
Oxford Biosciences acts as your Responsible Person in the UK and the EU under a single quality management system, holding the regulatory obligation: PIF maintenance, SCPN and CPNP notification, labelling oversight, and cosmetovigilance.
Learn more →CPSR
From £70 · 2 to 3 days
The Cosmetic Product Safety Report is the safety assessment required under Article 10 and Annex I of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 before a cosmetic product may be placed on the UK or EU market. Prepared and signed by a qualified safety assessor.
Learn more →Labelling
From £195 · from receipt of artwork
Independent review of packaging artwork against Article 19, and of product claims against the six Common Criteria of Regulation (EU) 655/2013. Label review £195; per-claim review from £125; substantiation dossiers from £1,495.
Learn more →Frequently asked questions
What are the UK Responsible Person requirements?
To sell a cosmetic product in Great Britain you must appoint a UK Responsible Person established in the UK, who takes legal responsibility for compliance, holds the Product Information File, and notifies the product through the SCPN service to the Office for Product Safety and Standards. Since 1 January 2026 the UK Responsible Person's name and address must appear on the product label for goods placed on the GB market. Oxford Biosciences acts as UK Responsible Person through Oxford Biosciences Ltd, and as EU Responsible Person through our Irish-registered entity, under a single quality management system.
What is SCPN?
SCPN, the Submit Cosmetic Product Notification service, is the UK government system through which cosmetic products are notified before being placed on the Great Britain market. It replaced reliance on the EU's CPNP for GB after Brexit. Notification is made by the UK Responsible Person and is overseen by the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS). A product should be notified only once it has been assessed as safe. Oxford Biosciences manages SCPN notification as part of its UK Responsible Person service.
What is a Responsible Person?
Every cosmetic product placed on the EU or UK market must have a Responsible Person established within that jurisdiction. Under Articles 4 and 5 of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, the Responsible Person is the legal entity that holds the regulatory obligation for the product: it maintains the Product Information File, makes the CPNP or SCPN notification, oversees labelling, and handles cosmetovigilance and contact with the competent authority. It is not simply a postal address. Oxford Biosciences acts as Responsible Person in both the UK and the EU under a single quality management system.