Product Categories
Skincare & Face Care
CPSR safety assessment and compliance for skincare: creams, serums, cleansers and masks. Preservation, stability and claims are where most skincare products stand or fall.
Skincare is the largest cosmetic category we assess, and the one where the safety assessment does the most work. Most face care is water-based, which means three things decide whether a product is compliant and saleable: the preservative system, the stability of the formula, and the claims on the pack.
Preservation and stability
A water-containing product must be protected against microbial growth across its shelf life and its period after opening. We establish that with preservative efficacy (challenge) testing to ISO 11930 and microbiological quality testing to ISO 17516, and confirm shelf life and the period after opening through stability and pack-compatibility studies. The safety assessor then models exposure across the whole face care routine, since a consumer rarely uses a serum in isolation.
Claims
Anti-ageing, hydrating, brightening and similar claims are not free text. Under Article 20 of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 and Commission Regulation (EU) No 655/2013, every claim must satisfy the six common criteria, including evidential support. Where a claim edges toward a physiological or medicinal effect, the product risks being reclassified as a medicine, and we flag that line before it becomes a problem. Ingredient limits move as well: Commission Regulation (EU) 2024/996 introduced maximum concentrations for retinol and its esters, retinyl acetate and retinyl palmitate, which is a reformulation trigger for many anti-ageing serums and body lotions.
Relevant services
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 →Testing
From £75
Stability, microbiology, photoprotection and analytical testing carried out in our three in-house laboratories. Analytical work is not contracted out; results pass directly to the assessor preparing your CPSR.
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 is a CPSR?
A Cosmetic Product Safety Report (CPSR) is the safety assessment required by Article 10 and Annex I of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 before a cosmetic product is placed on the UK or EU market. Annex I sets out two parts: Part A, the cosmetic product safety information (composition, physico-chemical and microbiological characteristics, stability, exposure and the toxicological profile of each substance), and Part B, the safety assessment, in which a qualified assessor states and reasons the conclusion on safety. It is the pivotal scientific document held within the Product Information File.
What is a Preservative Efficacy Test (challenge test)?
A Preservative Efficacy Test, also called a challenge test, demonstrates that a product's preservative system controls microbial growth across its life. Oxford Biosciences performs it to ISO 11930 for £165: the product is inoculated with the five specified challenge organisms (Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Candida albicans and Aspergillus brasiliensis), and viable counts are enumerated over a 28-day window against the Criterion A or B log-reduction thresholds. Typical turnaround is six weeks, reflecting the protocol duration plus enumeration and reporting.
How are cosmetic claims regulated?
Cosmetic claims are regulated as statements of fact, not marketing copy. Article 20 of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 and Commission Regulation (EU) No 655/2013 establish six Common Criteria that every claim must meet: legal compliance, truthfulness, evidential support, honesty, fairness, and informed decision-making. Evidence must exist before a claim is published and remain on file. Oxford Biosciences reviews claims per claim (£125, minimum five) and prepares formal Claims Substantiation Dossiers suitable for the Product Information File and for production to a competent authority or the Advertising Standards Authority.