NAFDAC Registration for an Imported Supplement: What the Importer Files and What the Factory Supplies

FIZZPHARMA makes effervescent tablets in tubes, drink cubes in single blisters and powder sachets under other brands' labels. It delivers worldwide, Africa included. This guide is the step-by-step registration route for a Nigerian importer. The overview of the market sits on the importers in Nigeria page. The guide explains NAFDAC's published documents as read on 22 October 2026. It is not legal advice: your importer confirms the final steps with NAFDAC.

Key takeaways

• The applicant is a Nigerian company registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission. The file is lodged in Nigeria, and the factory contributes its papers.
• Supplements follow the DR&R guideline (effective 13 December 2021, review date 12 December 2026). Food follows the FR&RA guideline (effective 1 March 2026). FIZZPHARMA checks both before each update of this article.
• A private-label brand owner usually needs a contract manufacturing agreement notarised in the country of manufacture, signed before the file opens.
• The label must be in English and carry the NAFDAC number. Agree the wording with your importer before artwork is printed.
• Nothing is marketed until the port laboratory result is satisfactory.

Which NAFDAC directorate and guideline cover an imported supplement?

The Drug Registration and Regulatory Affairs (DR&R) directorate handles imported supplements. Its guideline is "Guidelines for Registration of Imported Herbal Remedies/Dietary Supplements in Nigeria" (R&R-GDL-007-01), effective 13 December 2021 with a review date of 12 December 2026. Imported food and feed products go to the Food Registration and Regulatory Affairs (FR&RA) directorate under a separate guideline (FR&RA-GDL-001-01) effective 1 March 2026.

The review date is seven weeks after this article's date, so the supplement route may be updated soon. Check the guideline version on the day you file.

Which route a product takes depends on what it is. NAFDAC's draft dietary supplement regulations define a supplement as a product taken by mouth as a pill, capsule, tablet or liquid. There are two drafts: one from 2019, and one from 2025 marked "Closed for comments" on NAFDAC's site. An effervescent vitamin or mineral tablet probably fits that wording. In the NAFDAC texts reviewed for this guide, drink cubes and electrolyte powders are not assigned to either route. So your importer confirms the route with NAFDAC before artwork is drawn. The draft regulations are not law as far as the sources show. The importer verifies what is in force.

An older food guideline (R&R-GDL-006-00, effective 1 June 2018) is still downloadable and gives 120 working days. The 2026 guideline is the later document and gives 180.

Who files the NAFDAC application, and how?

The applicant is a Nigerian company with evidence of incorporation at the Corporate Affairs Commission. It sends an application letter to the NAFDAC Director-General and completes the online form on the NAPAMS portal (registration.nafdac.gov.ng). There is one application for each product. Your importer confirms with NAFDAC whether the flavours of a cube range count as separate products. The food guideline states that no physical submission is needed.

For a private-label range the applicant is the brand owner, under the agreement, or a company acting for the manufacturer, under a power of attorney. The factory's role is its papers. The file cannot close without them.

What does NAFDAC ask for, and who prepares each paper?

NAFDAC asks for papers from three sides: the Nigerian applicant, the factory, and the authority of the country of manufacture. Two of the items must be notarised or authenticated abroad, which is where time is lost. The table follows the supplement and food guidelines read on 22 October 2026.

FIZZPHARMA confirms its set for each of these rows, including the agreement, the invitation letter and the legalisation chain, in its reply to your enquiry. Certificate of Free Sale, Certificate of Manufacture, apostille and consular legalisation are part of its export documents.

How long does NAFDAC registration take, and how long does it last?

For supplements NAFDAC states 120 working days from acceptance of the submission to the registration number. For food the 2026 guideline states 180 working days. The clock stops while NAFDAC's compliance queries are open. An application is closed if a query gets no response within 90 working days.

The steps run in this order:

1. The applicant uploads the documents on NAPAMS.
2. NAFDAC screens them and issues an import permit.
3. NAFDAC vets the label.
4. The applicant submits laboratory samples with proof of payment, the Certificate of Analysis and a copy of the import permit.
5. An approval meeting reviews the documents, the GMP position of the production facility and the laboratory results. The supplement guideline says GMP inspection "where applicable". The food guideline speaks of GMP clearance.
6. NAFDAC issues the electronic certificate on NAPAMS.

Validity differs. The supplement guideline gives a certificate valid for 5 years or 2 years (the wording of section 10.2). The importer confirms which applies to the product. The food guideline gives 5 years, and renewal may be filed from 6 months before expiry. Registration does not include permission to advertise. A separate approval is needed, and the food guideline allows both applications to be filed together.

Which particulars does a NAFDAC label need on an imported supplement?

English is required and other languages may be added. The label carries:

• the NAFDAC registration number;
• the manufacturer's name and address;
• for imports, the registration holder;
• the country of origin;
• the manufacturing date in day, month and year, with the expiry or best-before date in plain figures;
• the batch number, storage conditions and ingredients;
• net content in metric units and directions for use.

Two cautions. First, the pre-packaged labelling text read for this guide is the 2019 version. NAFDAC's own documents also cite a Pre-packaged Food (Labelling) Regulations 2022. The importer confirms against the act in force. Second, the 2025 draft supplement regulations add a statement of identity containing "Dietary Supplement". They also add a recommended daily dose, an overdose warning and a "keep out of reach of children" line. They are a draft. A label that already has room for these lines is easier to adjust. The pre-packaged labelling text also bars medicinal claims.

FIZZPHARMA designs the label or checks yours once the wording is fixed, prints it at the factory and inserts the leaflet.

What happens at the port after registration?

Only a registered product from the registered manufacturer clears. The importer is the registration holder or holds its Letter of Authorisation. NAFDAC's Ports Inspection Directorate lists these documents for packaged food (PID-GDL-005-01):

• a letter of undertaking;
• Single Goods Declaration;
• commercial invoice;
• PAAR and Form M;
• bill of lading or airway bill;
• packing list;
• valid NAFDAC approvals;
• the original Certificate of Analysis;
• the warehouse address.

NAFDAC is informed 48 hours before arrival.

Release follows a first endorsement, a joint inspection with other agencies, sampling and a second endorsement. The goods may go to the importer's warehouse within 24 hours of sampling, but they may be marketed only after a satisfactory laboratory result.

Two points belong to the importer. First, NAFDAC's port guideline for nutraceutical and herbal products (PID-GDL-004-00) adds a valid premises registration with the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria. The texts reviewed do not say which port guideline covers a given supplement. Second, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria lists food products and medicines as exempt from SONCAP. It does not name supplements, so confirm that too.

Does Nigeria's N10 per litre excise reach tablets, cubes and sachets?

Nigeria has charged an excise of N10 per litre on sweetened non-alcoholic beverages since 1 June 2022, and the regulations may reach tablets, cubes and sachets. KPMG reads the Excise Duty (Non-Alcoholic, Carbonated and Sweetened Beverages) Regulations 2022, signed on 12 September 2022, as covering two groups. One is beverages sold in powdered, solid (including capsules and tablets) or concentrated form for consumption after dilution. The other is beverages with caloric sweeteners.

Three dated developments follow. On 30 January 2025 the Federal High Court in Abuja ordered Customs to stop collecting the excise from the plaintiff members of the employers' association NECA. The order runs pending compliance with section 13 of the Customs, Excise Tariff etc. (Consolidation) Act (ThisDay, 3 February 2025). On 4 June 2026 the Senate passed an amendment that would replace the flat rate with a tax on value or retail price. By 22 September 2026 the House of Representatives had not concurred (Nairametrics). The sources read carry no figure for the new rate.

Your importer and customs broker settle, product by product, how litres are counted for tablets and powders and who is liable. Ask them before the price list is fixed. If the tax applies, it is a cost line in the landed price of a drink-type product.

What is still open?

Three points stay with your importer and NAFDAC.

1. Route for drink cubes and electrolyte powders. The texts reviewed assign neither to DR&R or FR&RA. Ask before the formula and label are final.
2. Final supplement regulations. The 2019 and 2025 texts are drafts. Check for a gazetted version at the time of filing.
3. Which labelling act and port guideline apply. The documents cite more than one.

What does your situation decide for you?

What does FIZZPHARMA provide per batch for a Nigerian file?

Every batch leaves with a Certificate of Analysis and a specification, issued after testing in the factory's own laboratory. Copies of the ISO 22000, GMP and HACCP certificates, with their numbers, go to clients on request. For the importer's file there are export documents: Certificate of Free Sale, Certificate of Manufacture, apostille and consular legalisation. Factory visits and client audits are routine. See the certificates and CoA page.

Production of effervescent tablets and sachets starts from 4 weeks, with transport and customs on top. See minimum order and lead time for how the minimum is counted and the time of each format, and how an order works for the steps. Delivery is EXW by default, with FCA or DAP on request. A sample of an existing product is available before an order.

Send the format, the product brief, the destination port and what your importer has said about the NAFDAC route. The reply comes within 24 hours, Monday to Friday, with the document set FIZZPHARMA confirms for the Nigerian file. For the wider region see importers in West Africa. The other guides are in the knowledge hub.

Frequently asked questions