Korea to revamp cosmetics export platform, widen overseas regulation training

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Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) said Friday it will revamp an online cosmetics export support platform and begin monthly webinars on overseas regulations from April through October as it steps up support for K-beauty companies expanding abroad.

The ministry said it will gradually upgrade the Cosmetics Global Regulatory Harmonization Support Center, a government-run platform that provides domestic cosmetics companies with overseas regulatory information and export guidance, by the end of this year. Planned additions include integrated search, a mobile web service and customized alerts for major information updates.

The platform also offers information on overseas cosmetics approval systems, export guides, educational materials and COSBOT, an AI-powered cosmetics regulatory chatbot.

The ministry said it will upgrade COSBOT so answers are presented in a structured format that includes a key summary, related regulatory procedures, legal basis and additional guidance. The updated service will also include links to relevant regulations and suggested related questions.

The ministry said it will expand the system to cover 10 additional emerging export markets, bringing the total to 20 countries. The newly added markets are Singapore, Mexico, Vietnam, Russia, Kazakhstan, Cambodia, Myanmar, Uzbekistan, Brunei and Sri Lanka.

Separately, the ministry said it will begin its 2026 overseas cosmetics regulation webinars in April for cosmetics manufacturers and responsible distributors.

The webinars will cover Central Asia market entry strategies in April, European Union regulatory changes in May, Brazil’s cosmetics legal framework and import procedures in June, cosmetics regulations and approval procedures in Africa and the Middle East in July, and sunscreen regulation comparisons across Europe, the United States, China and ASEAN in October.

The ministry said overseas regulatory officials and other experts will take part in live question-and-answer sessions, with interpretation provided for foreign speakers.

It said 20 export regulation education sessions and seminars were held in 2025, drawing 3,481 participants.