Guides
How to read Korean sunscreen labels자외선 차단제 표시
What SPF50+, PA++++, 내수성 and 무기자차 mean on a Korean sunscreen, and which UV filters Korea allows — with their maximum amounts.
SPF: protection from UVB
SPF (자외선차단지수) shows protection against UVB, the rays that redden skin. In Korea, SPF is printed as a number up to 50; anything above 50 is printed as SPF50+. Korea’s drug regulator points out that the real difference above SPF 50 is small, and SPF50+ does not mean total protection.
SPF is measured with 2 mg of sunscreen per square centimetre of skin. Use less and you get less protection than the label says.
PA: protection from UVA
PA (자외선A 차단등급) is Korea’s UVA grade — UVA is the light that tans and darkens skin. The grade comes from the product’s UVA protection factor (PFA), and there are four:
| Label | UVA protection factor (PFA) | Protection |
|---|---|---|
| PA+ | 2 to under 4 | some |
| PA++ | 4 to under 8 | moderate |
| PA+++ | 8 to under 16 | high |
| PA++++ | 16 or more | very high |
PA++++ was added in 2016; before that, PA+++ was the top grade.
Water resistance
내수성 means water resistant and 지속내수성 means long-lasting water resistant. Korea’s regulator recommends one of them for the beach or pool — and says to reapply every 2 hours in the water even if it’s long-lasting.
Mineral, chemical or hybrid
- 무기자차 — mineral sunscreen: only zinc oxide and/or titanium dioxide. Can leave a white cast (백탁).
- 유기자차 — chemical (organic) sunscreen: organic UV filters.
- 혼합자차 — hybrid: both kinds.
These three words are everyday shop terms, not legal label terms; check the ingredient list to see which filters a sunscreen uses.
Sunscreens are functional cosmetics
UV protection is one of Korea’s functional cosmetic types, so a Korean sunscreen carries 기능성화장품 on the box, with the UV-protection claim it was reviewed or reported for. See functional cosmetics.
How to use it
The regulator’s advice: apply a generous, even layer about 15 minutes before going out, and reapply often if you sweat a lot or stay in the sun.
Common UV filters allowed in Korea
Korean name on the ingredient list, English (INCI) name and the maximum amount allowed in Korea, from the Korea Cosmetic Association dictionary’s copy of the safety rules.
| Korean | English (INCI) | Korean limit |
|---|---|---|
| 벤조페논-3 | Benzophenone-3 | 2.4% (5% in products for the face, hands and lips) |
| 벤조페논-4 | Benzophenone-4 | 5% |
| 비스-에칠헥실옥시페놀메톡시페닐트리아진 | Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine | 10% |
| 부틸메톡시디벤조일메탄 | Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane | 5% |
| 디에칠아미노하이드록시벤조일헥실벤조에이트 | Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate | 10% |
| 디에칠헥실부타미도트리아존 | Diethylhexyl Butamido Triazone | 10% |
| 디소듐페닐디벤즈이미다졸테트라설포네이트 | Disodium Phenyl Dibenzimidazole Tetrasulfonate | as the acid, 10% |
| 드로메트리졸트리실록산 | Drometrizole Trisiloxane | 15% |
| 에칠헥실메톡시신나메이트 | Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate | 7.5% |
| 에칠헥실살리실레이트 | Ethylhexyl Salicylate | 5% |
| 에칠헥실트리아존 | Ethylhexyl Triazone | 5% |
| 호모살레이트 | Homosalate | 10% |
| 이소아밀p-메톡시신나메이트 | Isoamyl p-Methoxycinnamate | 10% |
| 메칠렌비스-벤조트리아졸릴테트라메칠부틸페놀 | Methylene Bis-Benzotriazolyl Tetramethylbutylphenol | 10% |
| 옥토크릴렌 | Octocrylene | 10% |
| 페닐벤즈이미다졸설포닉애씨드 | Phenylbenzimidazole Sulfonic Acid | 4% |
| 폴리실리콘-15 | Polysilicone-15 | 10% |
| 테레프탈릴리덴디캠퍼설포닉애씨드 | Terephthalylidene Dicamphor Sulfonic Acid | as the acid, 10% |
| 티타늄디옥사이드 | Titanium Dioxide | 25% |
| 트리스-바이페닐트라이아진 | Tris-Biphenyl Triazine | 10% · not allowed in aerosols or pump sprays · nano form only if uncoated, median size over 80 nm and at least 98% pure |
| 징크옥사이드 | Zinc Oxide | 25% |
Zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are the mineral filters; the rest are organic (chemical) filters. Photograph or paste a sunscreen’s list in the label decoder to spot them.
Questions
What does SPF50+ mean on a Korean sunscreen?
The tested SPF is above 50. Korea prints SPF as a number up to 50 and anything higher as SPF50+.
What does PA++++ mean?
The highest Korean UVA grade: a UVA protection factor (PFA) of 16 or more.
What is 무기자차?
A mineral sunscreen, using only zinc oxide and/or titanium dioxide as UV filters.
Sources
- Korea.kr / MFDS — how to read sunscreen labels (5 June 2026)
- MFDS — “UVA protection grades expanded from three to four” (8 September 2016)
- Regulation on the Review of Functional Cosmetics (기능성화장품 심사에 관한 규정) — in force 16 December 2025
- Regulation on Cosmetic Safety Standards (화장품 안전기준 등에 관한 규정), as listed in the KCIA dictionary
- Korea Cosmetic Association — ingredient dictionary (대한화장품협회 성분사전)
Checked 26 October 2026. Rules change — the official texts above are the final word.