Fair Trade Commission Guidelines on Cases of
Weight Loss and Body Care Activities

Passed by the 777th Commissioners' Meeting on September 28, 2006
Promulgated by Order (95) Kung San Tzu No. 0950008783 on October 12, 2006
Amended by the 807th Commissioners' Meeting on April 26, 2007
Promulgated by Order Kung San Tzu No. 0960003889 on May 9, 2007

  1. (Purpose)
    These guidelines ("Guidelines") are enacted by the Fair Trade Commission, Executive Yuan (Cabinet) (hereinafter called the "FTC") to maintain trading order, protect consumer's rights and interests, and efficiently handle cases involving weight loss and body care.
  2. (Definition)
    The term "weight loss and body care" set forth in these Guidelines shall refer to a non-medical treatment with comprehensive instructions and measures carried out by hand, machine, tools, materials, cosmetics and food to maintain or improve physical or visual beauty.
  3. (Coordination with Other Agencies)
    Complaints involving weight loss and body care shall be initially received by the Department of Health, Executive Yuan (Cabinet) (hereinafter called "DOH"). DOH shall directly handle these complaints subject to health regulations and laws. With regards to complaints not involving treatment effectiveness, DOH shall provide professional authentication opinions regarding whether the complaints involve exaggerated, untrue or misleading representations prior to transferring such cases to the FTC to handle in accordance with the Fair Trade Law.
  4. (Types of False, Untrue or Misleading Representations or Symbols)
    No enterprise shall have any of the following acts with respect to it's advertisements concerning weight loss and body care activities:
    1. using any exaggerated or misleading word to claim the effect of a product or service without any medical or clinical basis: uproot fat, eliminate fat, dissolve fate, sculpt fat, burn fat, shatter fat, break down accumulated fat, avoid fat accumulation, facilitate dissolution of fat, enhance metabolism of fat, soften fat, suppress fat absorption, facilitate dissolution or contraction of fat cells, facilitate lymph metabolism, lymph circulation, remove toxicant, or shatter toxicant remaining in the body.
    2. claiming any of the following effects when no medical equipment, tools, material, clothing or handcraft subject to the Pharmaceutical Affairs Law is employed and without any medical or clinical basis: i. No intense exercise is required to lose weight or reduce the size of waist, belly, thigh, and leg within short period of time ii. It is able to stimulate breast growth or prevent, improve or eliminate shrinking, sagging or drooping breasts. iii. It is able to increase height within short period of time
    3. employing real person advertisement to describe the effect without clearly explaining the program and products taken to achieve such effect, time required for general consumer, percentage of success or failure, and relevant scientific bases
    4. No anticipated effects will be achieved during the claimed period of time in the advertisement.
  5. (Comparative Advertisement)
    The content of an advertisement concerning weight loss and body care that is carried out with a comparative approach should be neither false representation on the goods or service itself, nor false or misleading representation on other's goods or service should be made.
  6. (Other Deceptive or Obviously Unfair Actions)
    An weight- loss-and-body-care enterprise shall not have any of the following acts concerning it's marketing measures :
    1. employing promotions in the advertisement such as preferential or low prices or complimentary products to attract the consumer but considerably increasing other costs afterwards, causing differences in the expenses originally recognized or anticipated by the consumer
    2. failing to expressly inform the scope of trial to the consumer accepting free trials according to the advertisement and trading with such a consumer before completing the trial as well as using the opportunity to collect fees
    3. promoting for any activity that will increase the expenses during the provision of weight loss and body care services, or collecting extra charges than originally agreed; forcing or bothering the consumer to accept promotions that will increase the expenses when the consumer is embarrassed or in the middle of the weight loss and body care services; or promoting other programs of the same nature prior to the completion of the original program
  7. (Penalty)
    Liability in case of violation of the Fair Trade Law:
    1. An enterprise, which meets the descriptions set forth in Article 4, is in violation of Article 21 of the Fair Trade Law.
    2. An enterprise, which meets the descriptions set forth in Article 5, might be in violation of Article 19(iii), 22 or 24 of the Fair Trade Law.
    3. An enterprise, which meets the descriptions set forth in Article 6 and is able to affect trading order, is in violation of Article 24 of the Fair Trade Law.
  8. (Order to Publish Corrective Advertisement)
    If a corrective advertisement may prevent, eliminate or remedy the harm caused by an enterprise that violates Article 21(1) or (3) of the Law, the FTC may order such an enterprise to do so. The FTC shall follow the "Fair Trade Commission Guidelines on Ordering Enterprises to Publish Corrective Advertisements" to handle the matter.