Food supplement notification in the EU: how it works, country by country

Status as of 20 October 2026; country information checked on 19 October 2026. National authorities use different words for the same procedure: notification, declaration, communication or registration. This guide uses “notification”.

What food supplement notification is

Notification means telling the national authority that you are placing a food supplement on its market, usually by sending the label. It helps the authority monitor the market. In most countries it is an information duty, not an approval.

The legal basis is EU law, but each member state decides whether to use it. Directive 2002/46/EC, Art. 10, says: “To facilitate efficient monitoring of food supplements, Member States may require the manufacturer or the person placing the product on the market in their territory to notify the competent authority of that placing on the market by forwarding it a model of the label used for the product.”

When we checked the official sources on 19 October 2026:

• 21 member states required notification or registration of each product: Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Spain.
• Cyprus required notification only for some products; others need a marketing licence.
• Austria, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Sweden did not require it. Slovenia plans to reintroduce it once an implementing regulation is adopted.
• Lithuania: we could not verify the rules on the official website.

Who has to notify

The business that places the product on the market in that country. For a private label product, that is usually the brand owner.

• The Directive refers to “the manufacturer or the person placing the product on the market”. National law decides who exactly; in some countries it is the manufacturer or importer.
• The food business operator responsible for the food information is the one under whose name or business name the food is marketed (Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, Art. 8(1)). For private label, that is you.
• Some authorities say this explicitly. The Spanish food safety agency (AESAN) states that the obligation falls on the operator whose name and address in the EU appear on the label.
• Distributors: rules differ. Slovakia requires every operator to notify, even if another operator has already notified the same product. Estonia does not require a new notification for an identical product from the same manufacturer that is already in its database.

Before you notify, the business itself must usually be registered as a food business in its own country (Regulation (EC) No 852/2004, Art. 6(2)).

When you have to notify

Before or at the latest when you first place the product on the market in that country. The exact rule depends on the country.

• On the day of placing on the market at the latest: for example Slovakia, Hungary, Estonia, Finland and Denmark. In Slovakia you may sell from the day the authority receives the notification.
• Before the first placing on the market: for example Czechia, Belgium, Portugal, Greece, Croatia and Poland. In Czechia the product may be sold on the day the notification is sent.
• With a waiting period or a decision: in Bulgaria, the planned market date must be at least 14 days after the application. In Latvia the product must first be entered in the register. In Romania you need a notification certificate before selling.

Some countries require a number from the authority on the label, for example Greece (the notification number) and Bulgaria (the registration number and date). There you have to notify before you print the final labels.

What you submit

Usually the label, or the label text, in the national language, plus details of the composition. Depending on the country you may also need:

• a form with product and company data,
• quantities of active substances per daily dose and the chemical forms of vitamins and minerals,
• proof that you have paid the fee,
• proof that the product is lawfully sold in another member state, for example a copy of a notification made there (asked for by Spain, Poland and Cyprus in certain cases).

The label language is set nationally. Under Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, Art. 15, mandatory food information must be in a language easily understood by consumers where the food is marketed, and each member state may require its official language or languages. Finland, for example, asks for a model of the label in both Finnish and Swedish. What the label must contain is explained in Food supplement label requirements.

Is notification an approval

In most countries, no. The authority records the product and may check it later; responsibility for the composition, label and claims stays with the business.

• The German BVL states that it does not assess, examine or approve notified supplements.
• The Italian Ministry of Health states that notification is not an authorisation or an implicit approval.
• The Finnish Food Authority states that it does not assess whether the composition or labelling is lawful.

Some countries go further. Bulgaria and Latvia decide on entry in a register, and Romania issues a notification certificate. Croatia and France have a separate prior authorisation route for certain ingredients, and Cyprus requires a marketing licence for supplements other than vitamin and mineral products. Health claims on the label must come from the EU list in any case, see Health claims on food supplements.

Does one notification cover other EU countries

No. Each country that requires notification expects its own. Portugal and Greece state explicitly that notification is required even for products already on the market in another member state.

Mutual recognition still matters. Under the principle of mutual recognition (Articles 34 and 36 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, applied through Regulation (EU) 2019/515), a product lawfully marketed in one member state can, in principle, be sold in another even if it does not meet every national rule on composition, unless the authority has justified grounds to restrict it. In practice your notification in one country can serve as evidence of lawful marketing when you notify in the next. Spain, for example, accepts a copy of the notification made in another member state, together with proof of sale such as an invoice, or a mutual recognition declaration. More on buying and selling across borders in Sourcing supplements from another EU country.

Overview by country

Status as checked on the official websites on 19 October 2026. Fees are per product unless stated otherwise and are quoted as published by the authority. Rules and fees change, so check the current version with the authority before you file.

Where notification is not required, the label must still be in the local language and the product must still meet all EU and national rules.

Slovakia: notification to the Public Health Authority (ÚVZ SR)

Every food supplement must be notified to the Public Health Authority of the Slovak Republic (Úrad verejného zdravotníctva SR, ÚVZ SR) at the latest on the day it is placed on the Slovak market, together with a model of the label (Act No. 355/2007 Coll., § 52(1)(q)).

• Not an approval. ÚVZ SR records the product in a public register and does not issue a confirmation. Keep proof of delivery of your notification.
• Every operator notifies. According to ÚVZ SR, the obligation applies even if another operator has already notified the same product.
• How: the ÚVZ SR electronic form, with login through the Slovak e-government portal (preferred by the authority), by e-mail or on paper. One form per product; flavours and pack sizes of the same product can be included.
• What: the form in Slovak with the composition, chemical forms of vitamins and minerals, plant names in Slovak and Latin, daily dose and warnings, plus the label model and a signed declaration. The label must be in Slovak and, under the national decree currently in force, use the term “výživový doplnok”.
• Fee: €30 per product, reduced to €15 when filed electronically (Act No. 145/1995 Coll., item 150(ab) and § 6(2)).
• Business registration: businesses established in Slovakia register with the regional public health authority (RÚVZ) before they start, free of charge and even without a warehouse. According to ÚVZ SR, operators without a seat in Slovakia have this registration duty in their own member state.

Czechia: notification to the Ministry of Agriculture (MZe) via SOP on eAGRI

Every food supplement must be notified to the Czech Ministry of Agriculture (Ministerstvo zemědělství, MZe) before it is first placed on the Czech market, by sending the Czech text of the label including all mandatory information (Act No. 110/1997 Coll., § 3d(1)(b)).

• Not an approval. MZe describes it as an information duty only; it does not assess composition or labelling.
• How: the SOP application (Systém pro oznamování potravin) on the eAGRI portal. Foreign companies choose the person type “Zahraniční osoba” (foreign person). Access to eAGRI requires registration; a request for access sent by e-mail or post needs an electronic or officially verified signature, so apply well before your launch.
• What: the Czech label text in the required fields (trade name, ingredients, vitamins, minerals and other substances, other mandatory particulars). Uploading the label file is optional. Several products can be filed together.
• Timing: according to the MZe procedure of 11 August 2025, the product may be sold on the day the notification is sent.
• Confirmation: SOP lets you download a confirmation in Czech or English. MZe also accepts notifications by e-mail, data box or post, but does not send a confirmation for those.
• Fee: none is mentioned in the Act or on the MZe pages.
• Label: mandatory information in Czech, with the term “doplněk stravy”. A bilingual label for several markets is allowed.
• National lists: Decree No. 58/2018 Coll. sets maximum amounts for some plants and substances and bans others in food supplements, for example N-acetylcysteine.
• Deliveries: a Czech recipient of food supplements from another member state (for example a warehouse or shop) must report the consignment to the Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (SZPI) at least 24 hours before it arrives.

Checklist before you notify

• The product’s formula meets EU rules and the national rules of the country (plants, other substances, maximum amounts).
• Your business is registered as a food business where required.
• The label is final, in the required language or languages, with all mandatory particulars and only authorised claims.
• If the country requires a number on the label (Greece, Bulgaria), you will receive it before printing.
• You know the authority, the filing channel and whether you need an electronic identity or local login.
• You have the fee and the payment method ready, where a fee applies.
• The notification is filed before, or at the latest on, the day of the first sale, and you have kept the proof of filing.
• You have planned for a waiting period or decision where one applies (for example Bulgaria, Latvia, Romania).

The guide How to start a supplement brand puts notification in the context of the other steps, from company set-up to the first sale.

How we can help

In most EU countries, a food supplement must be notified to the competent national authority before it is placed on the market (Directive 2002/46/EC, Art. 10). Requirements differ by country. We’ll advise you on the notification and prepare the documents.

For each product in our catalogue you receive label texts in selected languages, a 1:1 size template and a manual for your designer. Printing and applying your label is optional, at €0.30 per unit; see labels. The choice of health claims on the label is yours.

We supply from 25 units per product at public prices in the price list. Tell us where you plan to sell through the enquiry form and we will advise you before you order.