European
Compliance Platform
European
Compliance Platform
The General Product Safety Regulation is the EU's default safety net for consumer products. If you sell physical products to EU consumers — online or offline — GPSR almost certainly applies to you, even if your product also carries a CE mark under another directive.
The General Product Safety Regulation (EU) 2023/988 ("GPSR") has applied since 13 December 2024, replacing the 2001 General Product Safety Directive (2001/95/EC). Unlike a directive, a regulation applies directly and identically in all EU member states — no national transposition, no local variation.
GPSR sets a general safety requirement for consumer products: any product placed on the EU market must be safe under normal or reasonably foreseeable conditions of use. It applies to essentially all non-food consumer products, whether sold through traditional retail, marketplaces, or direct-to-consumer e-commerce from outside the EU.
Crucially, GPSR was designed with online sales in mind. It closes gaps that the 2001 Directive left open around cross-border e-commerce, third-country sellers, and online marketplace responsibility.
GPSR works as a safety net. Its relationship with sector-specific EU legislation (MDR, Machinery Regulation, Toy Safety Directive, LVD, RED, etc.) works like this:
| Situation | What applies |
|---|---|
| Product has no sector-specific EU safety legislation (e.g. household goods, furniture, childcare articles, DIY tools) | GPSR applies in full |
| Product is covered by sector-specific legislation (e.g. toys, machinery, medical devices) | Sector legislation governs safety requirements; GPSR still applies for aspects not covered — traceability, Responsible Person, accident reporting, recall obligations |
| Product sold via an online marketplace to an EU consumer | GPSR applies regardless of where the seller is established |
This is the change that affects the largest number of non-EU manufacturers. Under GPSR, a product from a manufacturer established outside the EU cannot be placed on the EU market unless there is an economic operator established in the EU who takes responsibility for specific compliance tasks. This role is fulfilled by, in order of precedence:
The Responsible Person's name, address, and contact details (including an email address) must appear on the product, its packaging, or an accompanying document — and must also be visible on the online listing at the point of sale.
Responsible Person duties include:
Carry out a risk assessment, prepare technical documentation, ensure traceability information is on the product, appoint a Responsible Person if established outside the EU, and take corrective action for unsafe products already on the market.
Verify the manufacturer has complied with GPSR before placing the product on the market, ensure the product bears required traceability information, and keep a copy of technical documentation available for authorities.
Verify traceability and labelling requirements are met before making a product available, and not supply a product they know or should know is non-compliant.
Register with the EU Safety Gate portal, designate a single point of contact for product safety, and remove listings for products subject to a recall or withdrawal notice within two working days.
GPSR requires manufacturers to carry out an internal risk analysis and keep technical documentation that includes, at minimum:
Documentation must be kept for 10 years after the product was placed on the market and provided to market surveillance authorities on request, in a language they can understand.
Products must carry, on the product itself or (where not possible) on packaging or an accompanying document:
GPSR strengthens the EU's rapid alert system, now branded Safety Gate (formerly RAPEX), and introduces a new obligation: economic operators must notify authorities without delay through the Safety Business Gateway if they become aware that a product they have placed on the market presents a risk to consumer health or safety.
Separately, manufacturers must report to the relevant national authority any accident caused by a product they have placed on the market that resulted in — or could have resulted in — serious injury or death, within two days of becoming aware of it.
GPSR requires member states to set "effective, proportionate and dissuasive" penalties, but leaves the exact figures to national law — so enforcement and fine levels vary by country. Consequences of non-compliance can include:
Submit a request on ECP describing your product category and where you sell in the EU. We route it to EU-based Responsible Person providers and compliance consultants who can confirm scope and get you compliant before your next shipment.
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