Selling food supplements in Slovakia and other EU countries.
The process of notification and/or registration of food supplements with local authorities varies greatly between EU countries as it is not harmonised at the EU level.
In our experience, foreign manufacturers, importers, and distributors consider several factors before deciding in which country they sell their products. These are mainly:
- The complexity of the notification process, i.e. how to register food supplements in Slovakia and other EU countries?
- The volume of documents required by the local authority; What documents are needed for registration of food supplements in Slovakia and other EU countries?
- The time aspect, i.e., how long does it take to register food supplements in Slovakia or other EU countries?
- Commercial, trade and tax considerations are also important factors in the decision to enter a country’s market.
- Administrative fees also play a role, especially when it comes to notifying a large number of products.
What are the benefits for foreign manufacturers, importers or distributors of selling food supplements in Slovakia?
- Power of attorney (PoA) for representation of the manufacturer/distributor before the local authority does not have to be notarized or apostilled.
- The manufacturer, distributor or importer does not have to be authorized and registered in any electronic system or platform.
- No requirement to establish a company or have a warehouse in Slovakia in the case of distance / online sale of food supplements.
- Initial procedure for registering a dietary supplement does not differ from the procedure if the product is already placed on the EU market.
- Low administrative fee for notifying food supplements (EUR 30/ EUR 15 if filed to the electronic mailbox of the Public Health Authority).
- The process of registration officially takes 30 days but in practice it usually takes up to 2 weeks.
- Unlike many EU countries, a label does not have to be provided to the Slovak Public Health authority (however, a Slovak translation must be affixed to the final product).
- The operator is solely responsible for the safety of their product.
- Slovakia does not have a list of prohibited herbs that cannot be used in food supplements. However, psychotropic substances or unapproved novel food (e.g. CBD) cannot be present in food supplements.
bnt attorneys in CEE has considerable experience not only in notification of food supplements in all countries where bnt is represented, but also, for example, in assessing products, establishing a company, notifying an establishment with the authorities or finding a suitable partner for tax-filing duties.
Source:
- Act No. 152/1995 Coll. of Laws on Foodstuffs as amended; Decree of Ministry of Agriculture of the Slovak Republic and Ministry of Health of the Slovak Republic No. 16826/2007