China Pharmaceutical Guidebook Series (3) (2013 edition) Material and Clinical Trial Requirements of Application and Approval for Imported Drug Registration: A Guidebook of Registration Application for Imported Biological Products

China possesses a fourth population in the world and has one of the largest drug markets round the world. By 2012, sales on the Chinese drug market have reached RMB 926.1billion (about US$147 billion) reported by the «2012:  Report of China Pharmaceutical Market» published by Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. It is estimated that it will exceed RMB 1,000 billion by 2013. A series of factors, such as an increasingly ageing population, accelerating growth of urban population as well as expansion of healthcare covering urban and rural, will grow the Chinese drug market with a growth rate over 20 percent per annum in next three years. China is expected to become the second largest drug market in the world by 2015.

Since the reform and open door policy implemented by Chinese authorities in the late 1970s, the door of the Chinese drug market began opening up to the world step by step, which gave a fillip to the imported drugs from overseas pharmaceutical manufacturers and producers. By 2012, sales of imported drugs have shared one fourth on the Chinese drug market. As China joins the World Trade Organization (WTO) and integrates more completely into the global economy, it will further open the door of a lucrative drug market for overseas pharmaceutical companies. More and more overseas pharmaceutical manufacturers and producers expect to enter such drug market and seize a larger part of such drug market. To enter such a lucrative drug market, the first obstacle faced by overseas pharmaceutical manufacturers and producers is how to file the application for their imported drug registration with Chinese pharmaceutical authorities. In China, the process of application and approval for imported drug registration is very complex, because the Chinese pharmaceutical authorities administer and control this process by exorbitant administrative measures and regulations, moreover, these exorbitant administrative regulations are variable and lack of transparency. Therefore, a comprehensive and thorough knowledge of the latest Chinese regulations for imported drug registration has been become an essential prerequisite for overseas pharmaceutical manufacturers and producers to achieve a successful application for their products entry into the Chinese drug market. In despite of since the drug registration implemented by the Chinese pharmaceutical authorities on December 1, 2002, its regulatory regime has experienced countless changes, and become increasingly compatible with international standards, in turn, its ongoing consolidation will eventually contribute to a healthier market environment. The Chinese Pharmaceutical authority promulgated the last “Measures for the Administration of Drug Registration” on July 10 2007, and the last “Measures” entered into force since October 1, 2007. However, the practical operations for application and approval of imported drug registration have been constantly changed, because the amendment of “Measures” is delayed. Under such circumstance, Access China Management Consulting Ltd published the China Pharmaceutical Guidebook Series: 2013 Edition. The aim of this guidebook series is to guide overseas pharmaceutical manufacturers and producers to achieve a successful application and approval for their imported drug registration. This guidebook series are composed of four guidebooks as the following.

• Latest Chinese Regulations for Imported Drug Registration: 2013 Edition A Comprehensive Guidebook for Foreign Pharmaceutical Companies


• Material and Clinical Trial Requirements of Application and Approval for Imported Drug Registration: 2013 Edition A Guidebook for Application of Imported Chemical Drugs Registration


• Material and Clinical Trial Requirements of Application and Approval for Imported Drug Registration: 2013 Edition A Guidebook for Application of Imported Biological Product Registration


• Material and Clinical Trial Requirements of Application and Approval for Imported Drug Registration: 2013 Edition A Guidebook for Application of Imported Traditional Chinese Medicine and Natural Medicine Registration

In this guidebook series, overseas pharmaceutical manufacturers and producers can easily find out every answer that they will meet question during process of application and approval for their imported drug registration. Access China Management Consulting Ltd hopes this China Pharmaceutical Guidebook Series, based on full and accurate regulations and law, can help guide overseas pharmaceutical manufacturers and producers to achieve a successful application and approval for their imported drug registration in China.

Executive Summary

The biopharmaceutical industry is one of the burgeoning industries. In the field of biopharmaceuticals, vast knowledge awaits people to explore. The biopharmaceuticals are diversified and complex. In China, the development of biopharmaceutical industry is far behind the developed countries. The requirements of materials and clinical trials for registration application of biopharmaceuticals stipulated by the Chinese pharmaceutical authority are far from systematic and harmonized.

In China, the pharmaceutical regulatory authority ----- the SFDA (State Food and Drug Administration, China) divided the biopharmaceuticals for registration application into two classifications, i.e. the therapeutic biological products and the prophylactic biological products. However, in the classification of therapeutic biological products, the SFDA does not provide the uniform requirements of materials and clinical trials for application of biological products for the gene therapy, the somatic cell therapy and the allergic therapy, but stipulates the other guidelines for them respectively. These guidelines provide only a general principle for them because of their diversity and complexity. Just for this reason, a comprehensive and thorough knowledge of the latest Chinese regulations for imported biological product registration is particularly important  for overseas pharmaceutical manufacturers and producers to achieve a successful application for their products entry into the Chinese drug market.

This is the third guidebook of the China Pharmaceutical Guidebook Series. It provides a detailed introduction of SFDA’s requirements for materials and clinical trials of registration application and approval for imported biological products. This guidebook will introduce SFDA’s requirements for materials and clinical trials of registration application for imported biological products in four parts and twelve chapters according to the existing a serial of regulations and guidelines. The Part I provides an introduction of the requirements for materials and clinical trials of registration application for imported therapeutic biological products. The Part II introduces the requirements for materials and clinical trials of registration application for imported prophylactic biological products. The Part III addresses the requirements for materials and clinical trials of registration application for imported gene therapeutic biological products and somatic cell therapeutic biological products. The Part IV addresses the requirements for materials and clinical trials of registration application for imported allergic therapeutic biological products.

The guidebook concludes in chapter 13 by highlighting the significant suggestions for overseas pharmaceutical manufacturers and producers looking to achieve a successful application for their biopharmaceuticals registration in China. Last, the appendices in chapter 14 include the Drug Administration Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Regulations for the Implementation of the Drug Administration Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Chinese Good Clinical Practice of Pharmaceutical Products, the Form of Registration Application for Imported Drug, references, and description of Access China Management Consulting Ltd. After have skimmed through this guidebook, audience can be clearly aware of the latest Chinese regulations on requirements of the materials and the clinical trials for registration application of imported biological products. For the detailed pathway and procedure for application and approval of imported biological products, audience can learn from the first guidebook of the China Pharmaceutical Guidebook Series (2013 Edition) ---- Latest Chinese Regulations for Imported Drug Registration: A Comprehensive Guidebook for Foreign Pharmaceutical Companies.

Report Highlights

• The classification of biological product registration


• The material items for application of biological product registration


• The requirements of material items for application of biological product registration


• The requirements of clinical trial for application of biological product registration


• The guideline for application of biological products for human gene therapy


• The guideline for application of biological products for somatic cell therapy


• The guideline for application of biological products for allergic therapy


• The significant suggestions for overseas pharmaceutical manufacturers and producers looking to achieve a successful application for their biopharmaceuticals registration in China.


• Many useful resources of law and regulations, including the Drug Administration Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Regulations for Implementation of the Drug Administration Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Chinese Good Clinical Practice of Pharmaceutical Products, the Form of Registration Application for Imported Drug, and so on.

Who should buy this report?

• Companies wishing to enter a lucrative drug market in China.


• Companies interested in understanding the latest Chinese regulations on application and approval for imported drug registration.


• Senior executive officers engaging regulatory and registration affairs for drugs.