CDSCO Registration Mandatory For Cosmetic Imports Even If Goods Are Meant For Warehousing & Re-Export: Bombay High Court
The Bombay High Court has held that the import of cosmetics into India requires a mandatory registration certificate from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) even if the goods are brought into India only for warehousing and intended re-export. The Court observed that once goods are brought into India, the act constitutes “import” within the meaning of the Customs Act...
The Bombay High Court has held that the import of cosmetics into India requires a mandatory registration certificate from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) even if the goods are brought into India only for warehousing and intended re-export. The Court observed that once goods are brought into India, the act constitutes “import” within the meaning of the Customs Act and the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, and therefore compliance with the regulatory framework governing import of cosmetics is mandatory irrespective of whether the goods are meant for domestic sale or eventual re-export.
A division bench of Justices G. S. Kulkarni and Aarti Sathe was hearing a writ petition filed by Glamstone Cosmetics Pvt. Ltd. challenging a seizure memo dated 26 November 2025 issued by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) under Section 110 of the Customs Act. The petitioner had imported three consignments of cosmetics and FMCG products from the UAE and filed warehousing Bills of Entry stating that the goods were not meant for home consumption but were to be stored in a bonded warehouse and subsequently re-exported. The petitioner contended that the warehousing scheme under the Customs Act permitted the temporary storage of imported goods pending compliance with regulatory requirements.
The High Court examined the scheme of the Customs Act along with the Drugs and Cosmetics Act and the Cosmetics Rules, 2020. The Court noted that “import” under the Customs Act means bringing goods into India from a place outside India, and that imported goods are subject to all statutory prohibitions and regulatory requirements applicable to such imports. It further observed that the definition of “prohibited goods” includes goods whose import is restricted by any other law in force, including the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.
Referring to Rule 12 of the Cosmetics Rules, 2020, the Court noted that no cosmetic can be imported into India unless the product has been registered with the Central Licensing Authority. The Court held that this requirement applies at the stage of import itself and is not contingent on whether the goods are meant for home consumption or intended to be re-exported later.
The Court rejected the petitioner's argument that filing a warehouse Bill of Entry avoided the need for regulatory compliance. It held that allowing re-export in such circumstances would mean that Indian territory permits prohibited goods to be brought into India merely for the purpose of warehousing, and therefore, such unlicensed imports are permitted because the goods are to be ultimately re-exported.
“The imports in question being per se illegal cannot be labelled to be legitimate or legal, merely because the petitioner intends to re-export the goods and for which no duty according to the petitioner is attracted,” the Court observed,
The Court emphasised that in the larger public interest and the ill-effects of the sub-standard and unlicensed products being smuggled into the Indian territory warrant that the provisions of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act and the Rules framed thereunder with respect to any imports are required to be strictly implemented.
Accordingly, the writ petition was dismissed.
Case Title: Glamstone Cosmetics Pvt. Ltd. v. Union of India & Ors. [Writ Petition No. 957 of 2026]