A Health Canada NPN is the eight-digit Natural Product Number that Health Canada gives a natural health product when it issues a product licence. In Canada, you can't sell a natural health product without one, whether you sell in stores, on your own website or on Amazon.ca.
Do you need an NPN to sell supplements on Amazon Canada? Yes, if the supplement is a natural health product. Health Canada has to license it and issue an NPN (or a DIN-HM for homeopathic medicines) before it's sold anywhere in Canada. Amazon.ca also requires a valid DIN, NPN or DIN-HM for every drug and natural health product in its Canada store.
Below: what the number means, who needs an NPN in Canada, how to get one, timelines, labels, how to check an NPN, and the NPN problems we see most on Amazon.ca.
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What is an NPN?
An NPN, or Natural Product Number, is the eight-digit number on the label that shows Health Canada has licensed the product for sale in Canada.
Health Canada issues the number when it grants a product licence. Homeopathic medicines get a DIN-HM (Homeopathic Medicine Number) instead. Each number belongs to one specific product.
The licence sets the product's terms of sale. That means its recommended use or purpose, dose, duration of use and risk information. Those terms also limit what you can say on the label, on your website and on Amazon.
A few points people often get wrong:
- An NPN is an authorization, not an endorsement. Health Canada authorizes products for sale. It doesn't approve or endorse them, so "Health Canada approved" is not a claim you should make.
- An NPN doesn't cover other products. Each product needs its own licence, even within one brand.
- A foreign approval doesn't count. A US product needs a Canadian licence too.
Who needs an NPN in Canada?
Anyone who sells a natural health product (NHP) in Canada needs a product licence, and with it an NPN or DIN-HM, before the product goes on sale.
The Natural Health Products Regulations say no one may sell an NHP unless a product licence has been issued for it. Health Canada lists these as natural health products:
- vitamins and minerals
- herbal remedies
- homeopathic medicines
- traditional medicines, such as Traditional Chinese and Ayurvedic medicines
- probiotics
- other products such as amino acids and essential fatty acids
The list is wider than most sellers expect. Health Canada notes that some everyday products, like certain toothpastes, antiperspirants, shampoos, facial products and mouthwashes, are also classified as NHPs.
NHP, food or cosmetic?
Most supplements in capsules, tablets, powders or drops are NHPs, but products in food formats are usually regulated as foods.
Health Canada looks at what the product is made of, how it's represented, what it's for and its format. Here is how that usually plays out:
| Your product | Usually regulated as | What goes on the label |
|---|---|---|
| Vitamins, minerals, probiotics, herbal extracts and similar ingredients in a dosage form (capsule, tablet, tincture, measured powder) | Natural health product | NPN or DIN-HM and a Product Facts table |
| Bars, ready-to-drink beverages, candies and gums with added vitamins, minerals, amino acids or caffeine | Supplemented food | Supplemented food facts table and caution statements where required |
| Regular foods without supplemental ingredients | Food | Nutrition facts table |
| Skin, hair and body products with no therapeutic claim | Cosmetic | Cosmetic labelling rules |
Health Canada is also shifting sports electrolyte products in food formats from the NHP framework to the food framework. It encourages existing NPN holders for these products to transition by December 31, 2027.
Get the classification right before you design packaging. It decides which label you print.
How to get a Health Canada NPN
You get an NPN by filing a product licence application with Health Canada and having it approved. In short:
- Confirm the product is an NHP, not a food or a cosmetic (see the table above).
- Check your ingredients in Health Canada's Natural Health Products Ingredients Database, and see whether a monograph covers your product. A product that meets every parameter of a monograph can use the Class I route.
- Complete the product licence application form: medicinal and non-medicinal ingredients, source, potency, dose and recommended use.
- Make sure every manufacturer, packager, labeller and importer has a site licence.
- Answer any information request by its deadline. Once the licence is issued, the product appears in the Licensed Natural Health Products Database with its NPN.
For each step in more detail, read our NPN application walkthrough.
Product licence classes and timelines
Health Canada's published service standards are 60 calendar days for a Class I product licence application, 90 for Class II and 210 for Class III.
A product licence application tells Health Canada the medicinal ingredients, their source and potency, the non-medicinal ingredients and the recommended use. Applications fall into three classes:
| Class | What it covers | Service standard |
|---|---|---|
| Class I | Products that meet every parameter of a Health Canada monograph (the compendial route) | 60 calendar days |
| Class II | General and traditional applications that don't fit the compendial route | 90 calendar days |
| Class III | General, traditional and homeopathic applications that need the fullest review | 210 calendar days |
These cover Health Canada's screening and assessment, not your preparation time.
The Class III catch
Since March 5, 2025, Health Canada has prioritized Class III applications for products that will be sold or made in Canada within six months of licensing.
To be prioritized, you file a Workload Management Form within 15 calendar days of receiving your acknowledgement letter. Applications without the form are deprioritized, and Health Canada says it will review them when it is able to. If you plan to sell soon after licensing, file the form.
Fees
Health Canada doesn't currently charge fees for NHP product licence applications. Fees have been proposed, so check the current status before you budget.
Site licences
Every business that manufactures, packages, labels or imports a natural health product in Canada needs a site licence, as well as the product licence.
To hold a site licence, a site has to show it meets Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP). It also needs procedures for distribution records, recalls, storage and handling.
Before a product goes on sale, the product licence holder must give Health Canada the details and site licence numbers of each manufacturer, packager, labeller and importer, plus distributor details. For an imported product, the licence holder must show it is made and handled to Canadian GMP requirements or their equivalent.
For brands outside Canada, this means you need a Canadian importer with a site licence, as well as an NPN and a Canadian label.
NPN label requirements for Amazon Canada
To sell a natural health product on Amazon Canada, the label must show the NPN on the main panel and carry key information in English and French, and the Amazon.ca listing needs an image that clearly shows the number. Under the new labelling rules, the label also needs a Product Facts table, which every NHP must have by June 22, 2028.
Under the Natural Health Products Regulations:
- On the principal display panel: the brand name, the product number (NPN or DIN-HM), the dosage form, and the net amount by weight, volume or count.
- On the outer label: the licence holder's name (or the importer's, for an imported product), route of administration, lot number and expiry date, plus a Product Facts table.
- In English and French: the recommended conditions of use (use or purpose, dosage form, route, dose, duration and risk information), the names of medicinal and non-medicinal ingredients, the source material of each medicinal ingredient, and storage conditions.
The Product Facts table can be one bilingual table or two tables, one in each language. Its headings follow a fixed order: Medicinal ingredients, Uses, Warnings, Directions, Other information, Non-medicinal ingredients, and Questions? It can't include marketing language.
Key dates
These rules come from Health Canada's 2022 labelling amendments, which came into force on June 21, 2025. Every NHP must comply by June 22, 2028. Until then, products licensed on or after June 21, 2025 can still use the previous labelling rules under a temporary exemption. If you're designing packaging now, build in the Product Facts table from the start.
Check an NPN before you list
You can check any NPN for free in Health Canada's Licensed Natural Health Products Database (LNHPD). Search by the eight-digit number, then compare the record with the product in front of you. The brand name, licence holder, dosage form, medicinal ingredients and recommended use should all match, and the licence status should be active. Health Canada notes that a product with a suspended, cancelled or stop sale licence can't be legally sold in Canada.
We run this check on every NHP before we change a listing.
The NHP regulations after licensing
The Natural Health Products Regulations keep applying after you get an NPN, and so do the advertising rules in the Food and Drugs Act.
The main rules for sellers:
- Stay within the licence. Your claims, dose and directions should match the licensed terms, on the label and everywhere you sell.
- No disease claims to the public. The Food and Drugs Act prohibits advertising any product to the general public as a treatment, preventative or cure for the diseases and conditions listed in Schedule A.1.
- No misleading impressions. Section 9 of the Act bans labelling or advertising that is false, misleading or likely to create a wrong impression of a product's value, composition, merit or safety. Health Canada applies it to NHPs.
- Follow the advertising guidelines. Health Canada says NHP advertising should follow the Guidelines for Consumer Advertising of Health Products.
Anyone can report suspected illegal marketing of a health product to Health Canada, including your competitors.
Common NPN problems on Amazon.ca
If Amazon flags a missing or invalid number, use our Amazon.ca NPN notice guide to check the notice against the licence, label and listing before preparing a response.
For the steps from licensing to listing, read How to sell supplements on Amazon Canada.
The most common NPN problems on Amazon.ca are listings pulled for a missing or unmatched NPN, products flagged as NHPs when they aren't, and claims that go beyond the licence.
Amazon.ca's policy says every drug and natural health product in the Canada store must have a valid DIN, NPN or DIN-HM. Listings need images of the complete packaging, including one that clearly shows the number. Labels must be in English and French. Claims must stay within the product's licensed terms.
| Problem | What's usually behind it | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Listing suppressed for a "missing" NPN | The NPN isn't entered in the listing's compliance field, or no image shows it | Add the NPN to the listing, add a clear label image showing it with the English and French text, then ask for review |
| Product flagged as an NHP when it isn't | An ingredient or a health word in the listing triggered Amazon's checks | Appeal with the label, ingredient list and the reason it's a food, cosmetic or device. Remove health wording from the listing |
| Claims flagged in images or A+ content | Copy has drifted beyond the licensed use | Check every image and module against the licence wording, not just the bullets |
| Another seller shows your NPN | A different product is listed under your licence number | Use the LNHPD record, which shows the licence holder, to report it to Amazon and to Health Canada |
| "Health Canada approved" in the listing | A common shortcut in copy | Remove it. Amazon notes Health Canada authorizes products for sale; it doesn't approve or endorse them |
Amazon's own example shows how narrow the claims rule is. If a product is licensed as a sleep aid, a listing that adds "can be taken to relieve stress" is outside the licence and breaks policy.
A weekly check of every live listing against its LNHPD record catches most of these before Amazon does.
How BareGold helps
BareGold combines Canadian NHP compliance know-how with hands-on Amazon account management, so the licence, the label and the listing are handled by one team.
We're a Canadian company. We've sold health and personal care products, including supplements, on Amazon.ca and Amazon.com since 2017. Our experienced team is led by Eugene Savtchenko, President and CEO. We work with small and mid-sized health and personal care brands.
What we do for NHP brands on Amazon:
- Listings that match the licence. We check the NPN, product name, claims and label wording against the LNHPD record before proposing listing changes.
- Documents ready when Amazon asks. Category approvals, document requests and suppression cases, answered with the licence, label and supplier records for the product. Read our guide to Amazon compliance documents.
- Stock with expiry and lot in view. Reorders and FBA shipments planned around expiry dates and lot numbers.
- Canada and the US together. For US brands entering Canada, we plan the Canadian SKU and label alongside the Amazon.ca listing.
For a label check before you apply, start on productcompliance.ca. You review, attest and submit, and Health Canada issues the NPN.
You keep your Amazon account. Listing changes go live only with your written OK.
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See how we fix NPN listing suppressions.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need an NPN to sell supplements on Amazon Canada?
Yes, if the supplement is a natural health product. Health Canada has to issue a product licence and an NPN (or DIN-HM) before it's sold anywhere in Canada, and Amazon.ca requires a valid DIN, NPN or DIN-HM for every drug and natural health product in its Canada store.
What is a Health Canada NPN?
An NPN is the eight-digit Natural Product Number that Health Canada assigns when it issues a product licence for a natural health product. It must appear on the main panel of the label. Homeopathic medicines get a DIN-HM instead.
How do I check an NPN?
Search the number in Health Canada's Licensed Natural Health Products Database, which is free. Check that the brand, licence holder, ingredients and recommended use match the product, and that the licence status is active. A product whose licence is suspended, cancelled or under stop sale can't be legally sold in Canada.
How long does it take to get an NPN?
Health Canada's service standards are 60 calendar days for Class I applications, 90 for Class II and 210 for Class III. Class III applications are prioritized only if you file a Workload Management Form within 15 calendar days of your acknowledgement letter. Your own preparation time comes on top of the review.
Does Health Canada charge a fee for an NPN?
Not currently. Health Canada has proposed fees for NHP licensing and consulted on them in 2023 and 2024. It says final fees will be published in the Canada Gazette before they take effect.
Do I need a site licence as well as an NPN?
Yes, if you manufacture, package, label or import natural health products in Canada. Each of those sites needs its own site licence and must meet Good Manufacturing Practices. The product licence holder must give Health Canada the site licence numbers before the product is sold.
Does Amazon.ca require an NPN?
Yes. Amazon.ca requires a valid DIN, NPN or DIN-HM for every drug and natural health product in its Canada store. Listings need images of the full packaging, including one that clearly shows the number, and labels in English and French.
This page is general information, not legal advice. Rules change, so check Health Canada and Amazon Seller Central for the current versions before you act. Last reviewed October 26, 2026.