UVA in a circle on sunscreen

The sunscreen meets the European Commission’s recommended minimum UVA protection: a UVA protection factor of at least one third of the SPF on the label, and a critical wavelength of at least 370 nm.

How to read it

SPF measures protection mostly against UVB (sunburn); the circle adds a floor for UVA. On an SPF 30 cream it says the UVA protection factor is at least 10. The Recommendation also fixes the SPF words: low (6, 10), medium (15, 20, 25), high (30, 50) and very high (50+); Cosmetics Europe adds that the category should be shown at least as prominently as the number.

What it does not promise

It does not promise more UVA protection than one third of the SPF, and it does not give a UVA number — two creams with the circle can differ. It does not promise 100 % protection: the Recommendation says no sunscreen should claim or imply that, which is why ‘sunblock’ and ‘total protection’ should not appear. It is a recommendation followed by industry, not a requirement of the cosmetics regulation.

This page explains what a symbol or mark on the pack means in law or in the scheme’s own rules. It is not advice on whether a product or an ingredient is safe for you or suits your skin: for that, read the product’s warnings and ask a pharmacist or doctor.

What it looks like: The letters UVA inside a plain circle, printed near the SPF number and no taller than it.
Legal reference: Commission Recommendation 2006/647/EC, point 10; the circle itself is Cosmetics Europe (Colipa) Recommendation N°23
Also called: UVA logo; UVA circle; UVA symbol on sun cream

Good to know

The Commission’s Recommendation sets the UVA standard; the circle is how the trade association Cosmetics Europe (then Colipa) recommends showing compliance: ‘the letters “UVA” printed in a simple circular shape. The diameter of the logo should not exceed the height of the SPF number.’ Our drawing is our own lettering in a circle.

Other marks with the same shape

The estimated sign ℮ (next to 50 ml or 200 g)A small, rounded lower-case e, at least 3 mm high, printed right…The reversed epsilon ∃ on aerosol cansA small rounded mark like a backwards ε (or a curly 3), printed on…

Sources

Each document was fetched and read on the date shown. Written in our own words; quotations are the documents’ wording.

Legal text — EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the European Union): Commission Recommendation 2006/647/EC of 22 September 2006 on the efficacy of sunscreen products and the claims made relating thereto — Point 10: sunscreen products should provide ‘a UVA protection factor of 1/3 of the sun protection factor’ and ‘a critical wavelength of 370 nm’; point 5: no claim of 100 % protection such as ‘sunblock’, ‘sunblocker’ or ‘total protection’; the low/medium/high/very high SPF categories. Checked 2026-09-26.
Industry recommendation — Cosmetics Europe (formerly Colipa), the European cosmetics trade association: Colipa Recommendation N°23: Important usage and labelling instructions for sun protection products (24 February 2009, PDF) — Labelling of UVA protection: ‘Colipa recommends that on-pack indication of compliance with the EC recommendation should be done through the letters “UVA” printed in a simple circular shape. The diameter of the logo should not exceed the height of the SPF number.’ Checked 2026-09-26.