Supplement label requirements in AU, the US and the UAE, side by side

Labels are where regulatory work becomes visible. Every decision about ingredients, doses and claims ends up printed on a few square inches of packaging, and that is usually the first thing a regulator, retailer or marketplace looks at. If you plan to sell in more than one market, supplement label requirements by country will shape your packaging more than any design brief.

We see the same pattern often. A brand designs a beautiful pack for its home market, then discovers the second market needs a different panel, extra statements and another language. Here is how Australia, the US and the UAE compare, so you can plan for all three from the start.

Why supplement label requirements by country rarely line up

Each market regulates supplements under a different framework. Australia treats most supplements as complementary medicines. The US regulates them as a category of food. The UAE registers health supplements through a national authority with its own labeling expectations.

Those frameworks produce labels with different structures, and that is the root of most packaging rework we see. Some elements overlap, such as batch numbers and expiry dates. Others, like claim wording and the layout of the ingredient panel, are specific to each market.

Australia: the TGA label

For a supplement included on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods as a listed medicine, the label must follow the TGA’s labeling order for non-prescription medicines, known as TGO 92. Health supplement regulations in Australia are detailed here, down to where some information has to sit on the pack and how large it must be.

An Australian listed medicine label generally needs:

• The product name and the AUST L number, which shows the product is on the register.
• Each active ingredient with its quantity per dosage unit, using the approved ingredient names.
• The dosage form and the quantity in the pack, such as 60 capsules.
• Directions for use, along with any required warning and advisory statements tied to specific ingredients.
• The batch number, expiry date and storage conditions.
• The sponsor’s name and contact details in Australia.

Indications on the label must match permitted indications for the product. You cannot paraphrase them into something punchier.

The US: the Supplement Facts panel

Supplement labeling requirements in the USA are set by the FDA, and they look very different. The core element is the Supplement Facts panel, which has a defined format, order and minimum type size.

A US dietary supplement label generally needs:

• A statement of identity, which names the product and identifies it as a dietary supplement.
• The net quantity of contents.
• The Supplement Facts panel, showing serving size, servings per container and the amount of each dietary ingredient per serving, with daily values where they exist.
• An “other ingredients” list for non-dietary ingredients such as capsule shells and fillers.
• The name and place of business of the manufacturer, packer or distributor.
• Allergen labeling for major food allergens, where present.
• A domestic address or phone number for reporting serious adverse events.

If the label carries a structure/function claim, it must also carry the FDA’s standard disclaimer, linked to the claim.

Claims change the panel’s neighbors

In the US, the brand writes its own structure/function claims, within limits. In Australia, the claim must come from a permitted list. That one difference often decides whether the front of pack can be shared at all.

The UAE: registration-driven labeling

In the UAE, health supplements are registered with the Emirates Drug Establishment, which took over product registration from the Ministry of Health and Prevention. Labeling is assessed as part of that registration, and the label on the market must match the details in the registration file.

Expect a UAE label to need:

• Arabic text, usually alongside English, either printed on the pack or added through an approved sticker.
• The full ingredient list with quantities, plus directions and dosage.
• Warnings, precautions and allergen information where relevant.
• The batch number, production and expiry dates, and storage conditions.
• Manufacturer details and country of origin, plus importer or distributor details where the brand is not the manufacturer.

Requirements can vary with how the product is classified, so confirm the exact list with the authority before you print.

Running a supplement label compliance check across all three

Dual market supplement labeling works best when you plan it as a system rather than a single design. We suggest building one brand layout with market-specific panels, then checking each version against its own rules.

A practical order of work looks like this:

1. Lock the formula and doses first, because every panel depends on them.
2. Draft claims separately for each market, from what each system permits.
3. Build each mandatory panel in its required format.
4. Run a supplement label compliance check on each version before artwork goes to print.
5. Keep a record of which label version is approved for which market.

That last step sounds small. It saves real trouble when a reprint goes out with the wrong panel on it.

What a side-by-side view teaches you

When you lay the three labels next to each other, the pattern is clear. The formula can often be shared. The batch and expiry details look much the same. But the claims, the ingredient panel and the language requirements almost always differ.

Treating supplement label requirements by country as a design input, rather than an afterthought, changes how you approach packaging. You stop asking how to fit everything onto one pack and start asking how one brand can look consistent across three compliant ones.

That shift is what lets a small brand appear on shelves in Sydney, Los Angeles and Dubai without a recall notice following it there.