How to File a Cosmetic Notification Form (CNF) in Canada — Step by Step

Filing a Cosmetic Notification Form (CNF) with Health Canada is one of the most important steps before your first Canadian sale — and one of the most reliably confusing for new makers. This is a step-by-step walkthrough of what you need, where the portal is, and how to handle the parts that trip people up.

What the CNF actually is

The CNF is not a product approval. Health Canada does not review your formula and issue a licence before you can sell. The CNF is a notification — you are informing Health Canada that a product exists, who made it, and what is in it.

Filing a CNF does not mean your product is approved or safe to sell. You remain responsible for safety, compliance with the Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist, and accurate labelling. The CNF is a regulatory record, not a green light.

The obligation is: file within 10 days of first sale in Canada. First sale includes selling at a farmers market, craft fair, online, or wholesale — any transaction with a Canadian buyer.

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Before you open the portal — gather everything first

The most common reason a CNF filing takes hours instead of minutes is starting before your information is organized. The portal session can time out and it does not auto-save well. Prepare everything in a document or spreadsheet before you begin.

Company information you need

• Legal business name (the name on your business registration, not a product brand name)
• Complete mailing address including province and postal code
• Contact name, phone number, and email
• Whether you are the manufacturer, the importer, or both

Product information you need

• Product name exactly as it appears on the label
• Product category — for example: leave-on skin care, rinse-off hair care, bath product, bar soap
• Product sub-type — cream, lotion, gel, bar, powder, spray
• Area of application — face, body, hair, lips, around eyes
• Intended use — moisturizing, cleansing, conditioning, exfoliating
• Net quantity and unit of measure

Ingredient information you need (the hardest part)

• INCI name for every ingredient — not the common name, supplier trade name, or botanical Latin name unless it matches the INCI standard
• Concentration of each ingredient as a percentage of the finished formula
• For restricted Hotlist ingredients: the applicable restriction they comply with
• For fragrance oils: the full INCI breakdown of components (not just "Fragrance")
• For blended emulsifiers: the full INCI breakdown of the blend

Label content

• A copy of your label or the complete text as it will appear on the product

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Step 1 — Get a Health Canada portal account

CNF submissions go through the Health Canada Cosmetic Notification System. To access it, you need a Health Canada My Account (HC Portal) login.

Go to Canada.ca and search "cosmetic notification." The link to the CNF portal is on the Health Canada cosmetic notification page. Registration for an HC Portal account is free and takes about 10 minutes — you will need to verify your email and set up security questions.

If your business already has other Health Canada accounts (for example, a Natural Health Products account), you may be able to use the same login. Check before creating a duplicate account.

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Step 2 — Start a new notification

Once logged in, go to the Cosmetic Notification portal and select New Notification. The form is divided into several sections:

1. Company information
2. Product information
3. Ingredient list
4. Label content
5. Review and submit

Work through each section in order. The portal saves progress between sections once you click "Next" — but not within a section. Complete each section fully before advancing.

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Step 3 — Enter company information

Enter your legal business name and address exactly as registered. If you operate under a trade name, enter the legal entity name here — the trade name goes on the label, not necessarily in the CNF company section.

Select your role: manufacturer, importer, or distributor. Most indie makers who formulate and sell their own products select manufacturer.

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Step 4 — Enter product information

Enter the product name as it appears on your label. Select the most accurate product category and sub-type from the dropdown menus. The categories are broad — if your exact product type is not listed, select the closest match and note the intended use in the text field.

For bar soap made by cold process, the product category is typically "rinse-off" and the sub-type is "bar soap" or "body cleanser." Not "skin care" — soap is a rinse-off product.

For body butter, the product category is "leave-on" and the sub-type is something like "body lotion/cream" or "moisturizer."

For bath bombs, select "bath product" — they are rinse-off and the product type is typically "bath bomb" or "bath preparation."

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Step 5 — Enter the ingredient list

This is the most time-consuming section. You will enter each ingredient individually:

1. INCI name
2. Concentration (as a %)
3. Function (the cosmetic function of that ingredient — emollient, preservative, fragrance, etc.)
4. Hotlist flag if applicable

For cold process soap, remember that you are notifying the saponified ingredients, not the oils you put in. Olive oil becomes Sodium Olivate. Coconut oil becomes Sodium Cocoate. Palm oil becomes Sodium Palmate. Water becomes Aqua. The glycerin produced during saponification is listed as Glycerin. Your lye (Sodium Hydroxide) is consumed in the reaction and does not appear in the finished soap ingredient list.

For fragrance oils, enter each component of the fragrance separately by INCI name. If you do not have the full INCI breakdown from your supplier, you cannot complete this section accurately. Contact your supplier for an Allergen Declaration or INCI Ingredient Disclosure before filing.

For essential oils, the INCI name is typically the botanical Latin binomial — Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Flower Oil, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia (Bergamot) Fruit Oil, etc. Fragrance allergens from essential oils that are above the disclosure threshold should also be entered as individual line items.

Concentration ranges are permitted for some ingredients where exact percentages are difficult to specify. A range like 1–5% is acceptable for most ingredients. For restricted Hotlist ingredients, use a specific percentage rather than a range.

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Step 6 — Upload label content

Upload an image or PDF of your label, or enter the label text. The label must match the ingredient list you entered — if the INCI order on your label differs from what is in the CNF, resolve that before submitting.

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Step 7 — Review and submit

Review every section before hitting submit. The review screen shows all your inputs together for a final check. Common things to catch at review:

• Ingredient concentration percentages that don't add up to approximately 100%
• A restricted ingredient entered without its applicable condition noted
• Fragrance listed as "Fragrance" without individual allergen components
• Label language that doesn't match the ingredient list

Once submitted, you will receive a confirmation. Keep that confirmation and all supporting records (your formula version, label version, supplier COAs) on file.

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Common sticking points and how to handle them

"I don't have my fragrance oil INCI breakdown"

Contact your supplier before filing. Ask for an Allergen Declaration or INCI Ingredient Disclosure. A reputable fragrance supplier provides this document. If they cannot or will not, that is important information about whether to continue using their product.

"My ingredients don't add up to exactly 100%"

This is usually a rounding issue. The CNF system generally accepts totals within a small tolerance of 100%. If you are significantly off, check your formula percentages — especially for small-percentage ingredients like fragrance and preservative that are easy to miskey.

"I'm not sure which product category to select"

When in doubt, err on the side of the intended primary use. A tinted lip balm is a lip care product. A massage oil with fragrance is a leave-on body care product. A dry shampoo is a hair care product. If your product genuinely spans categories, choose the one that reflects how the consumer primarily uses it.

"I changed my formula after I filed — do I need to update?"

If a material change occurred — a new ingredient added, a concentration changed significantly, a restricted ingredient's usage condition changed — update the CNF. Log into the portal and submit an amendment. A label reprint is usually a signal that the CNF needs updating too.

"I missed the 10-day window"

File as soon as possible. The obligation exists and late notification is better than no notification. If Health Canada contacts you about a late filing, cooperating promptly and having complete documentation is the appropriate response.

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How FormulaNorth helps

The CNF Readiness Checker walks through the pre-filing checklist — INCI names, Hotlist flags, fragrance allergen review, and label reminders. Free, no account needed.

For makers who want to keep their formula information organized alongside CNF prep, a Maker account saves formulas with INCI names, percentages, and Hotlist context in one place so the ingredient section of the CNF is already organized when you need it.

FormulaNorth does not submit CNFs and does not guarantee acceptance. You file directly through the Health Canada portal.

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What to do after filing

• Keep a copy of your CNF confirmation and the formula version you notified
• Keep supplier COAs for all ingredients in that formula version
• If any ingredient, supplier, or concentration changes materially, update the CNF
• If you launch new products, file separate CNFs for each one before or within 10 days of first sale

Always verify against current Health Canada guidance before filing. The CNF process and requirements can change. The steps above reflect the process as of July 2026.