The Union health ministry has banned the import of cosmetics tested on animals. The ban comes in the form of Rule 135-B that states, “Prohibition of import of cosmetics tested on animals. - No cosmetic that has been tested on animals after the commencement of Drugs and Cosmetics (Fifth Amendment) Rules, 2014 shall be imported into the country”.

The notification will come into effect on 13 November, 2014, 30 days from the date of notification.  By banning the import of cosmetics tested on animals, India has become the first cruelty-free cosmetics zone in South Asia.

Earlier in May this year, the government had prohibited the testing of cosmetic products and ingredients on animals within the country.

Humane Society International (HSI) India has hailed the Indian government's new decision to ban import of cosmetics tested on animals.    

Alokparna Sengupta, HSI India’s BeCrueltyFree campaigns manager, said; “With today’s historic ban on the import of newly animal-tested cosmetics, India has made history for animals in South Asia. This is a huge achievement that could not have been possible without the compassion of our government, consumers and industry. We feel confident that if this vision is applied to other areas of product testing, this can be a defining moment in the modernisation of India’s safety science, with potentially hundreds of thousands more animals spared pain and suffering.”

Gauri Maulekhi, Trustee, People for Animals, a BeCrueltyFree India partner, said: “India has shown outstanding leadership by so swiftly advancing first a ban on cosmetics animal testing and now a ban on animal-tested cosmetics imported from overseas. By working so diligently with the BeCrueltyFree India campaign, our policy makers have put India on the map as a country transforming its laboratories and regulation from outdated test methods to state-of-the-art science. Animals, consumers, scientists and companies have everything to gain from such modernisation.”

HSI/India’s BeCrueltyFree campaign has been instrumental in achieving the final import ban. In June, HSI met with the Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Dr Harsh Vardhan, to present a petition of more than 70,000 signatures supporting an import ban. Support from more than 30 legislators also has been critical, with special thanks to Maneka Gandhi, Baijayant Panda, L K Advani, Dr Murli Manohar Joshi and Supriya Sule, HSI said.