Importers

Selling imported supplements online in Thailand legally

10 min read · Updated 9 Nov 2026

Selling imported supplements online in Thailand: four things to have in place

To sell imported supplements online in Thailand you need four things in place: an importer holding a food import licence, a food serial number for each product, a Thai label that meets the notifications, and advertising wording that stays inside the advertising criteria. The four are linked; if one is missing, the others cannot be relied on.

Many new sellers assume online selling comes with more exemptions than a physical shop. For dietary supplements the opposite is true. MOPH Notification No. 474 B.E. 2569 (2026), which amends food labelling Notification No. 450, says plainly that dietary supplements are not exempt from labelling, even when the producer sells directly through e-commerce. The wording in posts, live streams and shop pages falls under the Thai FDA food advertising criteria of B.E. 2569 (2026).

This guide runs from the import licence to the wording of a sales post. For the full import procedure, see importing dietary supplements into Thailand. For the full advertising rules, see Thai food advertising permits under the 2026 criteria.

The food import licence: who is the real importer

The Food Act B.E. 2522 (1979) requires anyone importing food for sale to hold a licence first. Ministerial Regulation No. 2 (1979) sets the application form Or.6 and the import licence Or.7, which is valid only for the import and storage premises named on it.

Storage must be real and suitable

The same regulation requires storage premises to be clean, adequately lit and ventilated, equipped to keep food quality for the volume stored, and to keep each type of food separately. The Act also prohibits storing food outside the premises named in the licence. An online shop packing orders from a room that is not on the licence should check this before expanding stock.

Buying from a Thai importer vs importing yourself

If the shop buys stock from a company in Thailand that already imports it, the shop is not the importer, but it should confirm that each product has a serial number and a Thai label naming the importer. If the shop orders directly from an overseas manufacturer for resale, the shop is the importer and needs its own licence. For the Or.6 filing and storage rules, see the Thai food import licence.

Imported supplements need a food serial number before sale

MOPH Notification No. 293 B.E. 2548 (2005) classifies dietary supplements as food with prescribed quality or standards. The Thai FDA regulation on food serial numbers B.E. 2567 (2024) puts this group among foods that must obtain a serial number, so a licensed importer must obtain one for each product before importing it for sale.

Documents from the overseas manufacturer

• The Thai FDA notification on evidence for supplement label approval lists import documents such as a manufacturing site certificate and a Certificate of Free Sale, together with the formula, process and analysis results.
• The Thai FDA notification of 2024 on production system certificates for imported food requires the foreign factory's certificate to state a standard equivalent to or not lower than Notification No. 420, with a scope covering the imported food.
• The 2024 serial number regulation requires supplements to submit quality analysis results on first import, and requires the 100% formula, process and raw material specifications to be kept at the import premises for inspection.

The Thai FDA dietary supplement licensing manual (revised 2026) explains that the serial number is requested on form Sor.Bor.5 through the electronic system. The number has 13 digits and must be printed in the prescribed frame on the label. How to read each group of digits is covered in the 13-digit FDA number on supplements.

One point matters for online sellers: the serial number depends on the import licence. The 2024 regulation says that if the import licence Or.7 is cancelled, every serial number under it lapses. Shops that source from another importer should check the number's status from time to time with the FDA number checker.

Thai labels: online sales do not remove the label duty

Clause 3 of labelling Notification No. 450 used to exempt producers who sell directly to consumers and can give product information themselves. Notification No. 474 of 2026 replaced that clause. Direct sales, including sales through e-commerce, remain exempt in general, but nine groups of food are not exempt, and dietary supplements are one of them. They must still follow the labelling notification and related rules.

In practice there is no route to selling imported supplements online with only the foreign label.

Label items importers should watch

• The label must be in Thai; other languages may be added.
• The name and address of the importer, plus the name and country of the manufacturer, under the new clause 5 (3.2) in Notification No. 474, with wording that makes clear which party is the importer.
• The food serial number, net quantity in metric units, key ingredients, allergen information and the expiry or best-before date.
• Supplement-specific wording under Notification No. 293, such as the words for dietary supplement in the product name and the required warnings, including the statement that the product does not prevent or cure disease.

Notification No. 474 also adds clause 5/1 on digital labels, but the core items, such as name, serial number, quantity, ingredients, allergens, expiry date and warnings, must stay on the package. Full warning wording and layout are in Thai supplement label requirements, and you can check a draft with the label checker.

When a shop page, product photo or description becomes advertising

A common question is whether posting product photos and details on a shop page counts as advertising. Clause 11 of the 2026 food advertising criteria answers it: displaying the legally required label is not advertising, unless the label image or label text is published through media, in which case the advertising criteria apply.

Shop pages, social media posts and sales videos are publication through media. Section 41 of the Food Act covers advertising on radio, television, film, newspapers, printed matter or any other means, so online channels are included. Separate two kinds of content:

• Information that matches the approved label, such as name, ingredients, quantity, directions and warnings. Show it in full.
• Statements about benefits, quality or properties, such as what the product does for the body or what results to expect. This is advertising that must stay within the criteria and, in some cases, needs a permit before publication.

Translating the overseas manufacturer's marketing copy word for word is the biggest risk, because a claim allowed in the home market may be wording the Thai criteria prohibit.

Supplement posts: prohibited wording and claims that need a permit

The 2026 food advertising criteria give sellers three things to know.

Prohibited wording (clauses 4 and 5)

• Clause 4 bans statements unfair to consumers, such as referring to substances that do not exist, misleading people about how to consume the product, endorsement by medical professionals, and disparaging other products.
• Clause 5 bans false or deceptive claims about benefits, quality or properties, such as implying the product relieves or prevents disease, changes body structure or function, boosts sexual performance, nourishes the skin, causes weight loss or body shaping, or citing studies or statistics not yet assessed as health claims.

Advertising that needs no prior permit (clause 6)

Non-commercial technical information that presents both advantages and drawbacks, corporate image advertising, and advertising that uses only the wording in List No. 2 of the notification.

Advertising that needs a permit first (clause 7)

For example, benefit statements approved for the label, nutrition claims and health claims. The application uses form Kor.Or.1 with attachments on form Kor.Or.3 for the type of media.

The Thai FDA guidance on supervising food advertising also gives examples of wording to avoid, such as boosting immunity, detox, whitening, anti-ageing, superlatives like best or miraculous, and statements implying that a government agency vouches for product quality. It lists images to avoid, such as before-and-after pictures, scales and tape measures. Once a permit is granted, the content used must match the permit and the permit number must appear in the media, except radio.

Live selling, reviewers and presenters

Live selling and review videos carry different risks from written posts, because words are spoken in real time and often by someone other than the brand owner. The rules do not change with the channel: what may not be written may not be said.

Presenters

Clause 10 of the 2026 criteria requires presenters in dietary supplement advertising to be at least 15 years old and not pregnant, and clause 4 bans medical professionals endorsing the product.

Warnings in media

Clause 9 requires warnings in visual media to have a letter height of at least 1/25 of the advertisement's height, audio warnings to be clearly audible in every syllable, and audiovisual media may show the warning as a super for at least 5 seconds.

What to agree with reviewers in advance

• Give them a script or list of approved statements that matches the label or the advertising permit.
• No before-and-after stories and no suggestion that the product replaces medicine.
• No claims that doctors or experts recommend it.
• Keep the video files and scripts for later checks.

To see which wording tends to draw attention, read the consumer-side guide how to spot exaggerated health and beauty ads.

Supplement import companies: duties that continue after launch

Getting a serial number and opening a shop is not the end. Importers carry continuing duties that directly affect online sales.

• Keep documents ready for inspection. The 2024 serial number regulation requires the 100% formula, process and raw material specifications to be kept at the import premises.
• Know when a serial number can be cancelled. The same regulation lists 18 grounds, such as label claims of drug or cosmetic properties, false advertising, or no 100% formula available for inspection, and the holder must be heard first.
• Advertising permits depend on the import licence. Clause 12 of the 2026 criteria allows advertising permits to be revoked when the import licence or registration is cancelled.
• Orders to stop advertising. Section 42 of the Food Act allows the authority to stop advertising that breaches Section 41, and to stop import, sale or advertising of food lacking the advertised benefits.
• Labels must follow the amendment. Clause 9 of Notification No. 474 allows old labels of general foods to continue under conditions, but clause 10 requires the nine groups listed in clause 3, including dietary supplements, to comply with the amended notification from its effective date. Check the labels you are using against it now.

Checklist before opening an online supplement shop

Before opening a shop or adding a product, work through this list in order.

• The importer holds an Or.7 licence and the storage premises match where stock is actually kept.
• Each product has a food serial number that is still valid.
• The overseas factory's production system certificate covers the product.
• A full Thai label is on the package, including the importer's name, the manufacturer's name and country, and supplement warnings.
• The shop page separates label information from advertising wording.
• Advertising wording contains nothing from clauses 4 and 5 of the 2026 criteria.
• Any nutrition or health claim has an advertising permit before publication.
• Presenters and reviewers know the restrictions and use a checked script.

Check import readiness with the import readiness tool. For help from licence to serial number, see import services, and for advertising permits see advertising permit services.

Sources

1. พระราชบัญญัติอาหาร พ.ศ. 2522 · Open source · Search our archive
2. ฉบับที่ 2 (พ.ศ. 2522) เรื่อง การขอรับใบอนุญาตนำเข้าซึ่งอาหารเพื่อจำหน่าย No. 2 B.E. 2522 (1979) Issued pursuant to the Food Act B.E 2522 (1979) · Open source · Search our archive
3. ประกาศกระทรวงสาธารณสุข (ฉบับที่ 293) พ.ศ.2548 เรื่อง ผลิตภัณฑ์เสริมอาหาร · Open source · Search our archive
4. 2) ระเบียบสำนักงานคณะกรรมการอาหารและยา ว่าด้วยการดำเนินการเกี่ยวกับเลขสารบบอาหาร พ.ศ.2567 · Open source · Search our archive
5. ประกาศสำนักงานคณะกรรมการอาหารและยา เรื่อง หลักฐานและเอกสารประกอบการยื่นขออนุญาตใช้ฉลากของผลิตภัณฑ์เสริมอาหาร และคุณภาพหรือมาตรฐานด้านจุลินทรีย์ที่ทำให้เกิดโรค · Open source · Search our archive
6. เรื่อง เอกสารหรือใบรับรองมาตรฐานระบบการผลิตอาหารสำหรับการนำเข้าผลิตภัณฑ์อาหาร Re: Document or Certificate of Food Production System Standards for Import of Food Products. บังคับใช้ (In_force) 27/11/67 · Open source · Search our archive
7. คู่มือการขออนุญาตผลิตภัณฑ์เสริมอาหาร (ฉบับปรับปรุง 2569) · สำนักงานคณะกรรมการอาหารและยา · Open source · Search our archive
8. 1) ประกาศกระทรวงสาธารณสุข (ฉบับที่ 450) พ.ศ.2567 เรื่อง การแสดงฉลากอาหารในภาชนะบรรจุ · Open source · Search our archive
9. ประกาศกระทรวงสาธารณสุข (ฉบับที่ 474) พ.ศ. 2569 เรื่อง การแสดงฉลากของอาหารในภาชนะบรรจุ (ฉบับที่ 2) · Open source · Search our archive
10. เรื่อง หลักเกณฑ์การโฆษณาอาหาร พ.ศ. 2569 · Open source · Search our archive
11. หมวด 5 การขึ้นทะเบียนและการโฆษณาเกี่ยวกับอาหาร · Open source · Search our archive
12. แนวทางการกำกับดูแลการโฆษณาผลิตภัณฑ์อาหาร · Open source · Search our archive

This article is for general information. It is not a Thai FDA ruling or legal advice, and rules change — check the latest notification or ask an expert before filing or producing.

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