GPSR Regulation 2023/988: Importer Obligations

Regulation (EU) 2023/988 on general product safety, often abbreviated GPSR, replaces Directive 2001/95/EC and has applied since 13 December 2024. It governs consumer products when no European harmonisation text governs their safety. Candles, furniture, textiles, leisure items: a large share of imports from China fall within this scope.

The GPSR does not replace product directives. If your item falls under a harmonisation text, the Toy Safety Directive 2009/48/EC or the Radio Equipment Directive 2014/53/EU for instance, those texts take precedence. The regulation then steps in as a complement, for the risks they do not cover. This distinction is decided product by product, and it is decided before the order, not after customs clearance.

For a buyer, the change comes down to two points: explicit obligations now rest on the importer, and distance sales from sellers established outside the European Union are expressly covered. Second-hand and refurbished products also fall within scope.

The regulation covers products made available to consumers, or liable to be used by them, whether new, second-hand or refurbished. Certain products fall outside this general framework: medicines, food products or cosmetics, covered by their own regime, remain governed by their own texts.

The question to settle first: does your product fall under a harmonisation text? Without a specific text, the GPSR applies automatically. The manufacturer must then carry out an internal risk analysis and prepare technical documentation covering the product and its potential hazards. Many Chinese factories discover this requirement the day a buyer asks for it.

A common case in sourcing: the product combines both regimes. A piece of furniture with built-in lighting, a leisure item fitted with a motor, a decorative lamp: the part governed by a product directive follows its own text, the rest depends on the GPSR. The exact scope should be checked with a compliance specialist for sensitive products.

If you import in your own name, under your own EORI number, you are the importer within the meaning of the regulation. Before placing the product on the market, you must check that the manufacturer has carried out its risk analysis and compiled its technical documentation, that the product bears its identity and contact details, and that safety instructions and warnings appear in the languages required by the Member State of sale.

The regulation also requires affixing your details as importer to the product, and if that proves impossible, to the packaging, the parcel or an accompanying document. You must then cooperate with market surveillance authorities if a risk emerges: supplying documents, taking corrective measures, informing. These requirements are written into the specification before production, not on the day of loading.

A GPSR file for a product outside a harmonisation text includes at least the risk analysis, the product description, relevant tests and evidence, and instructions for the consumer. The manufacturer keeps these records and makes them available to authorities; the importer must be able to obtain them without delay.

Weak files tend to look alike: a risk analysis copied from a generic template, tests carried out to Chinese GB standards unrelated to European usage, instructions in English when the country of sale requires French. These flaws are spotted before production. A reference sample and a pre-shipment inspection round out the check on the actual product.

Keep everything together with your commercial file: invoice, proforma, key exchanges. In the event of a check, the speed and consistency of the response are part of the file's credibility.

For any product manufactured outside the Union, the GPSR requires a responsible person established in the Union. Their name and contact details appear on the product, its packaging, the parcel or an accompanying document. Without one, the product cannot be placed on the market, including through distance selling from a third country.

The importer can take on this role, just as the manufacturer can appoint a representative established in the Union. Many buyers discover this requirement during a customs check. Yet it is settled upstream: designate the responsible person in the purchase contract, check that their contact details appear on the goods, and explain to the factory that this point is not negotiable.

Online sellers established outside the Union who sell directly to European consumers are also covered. Marketplaces must check the existence of the responsible person and the operator's contact details before listing the product.

The regulation strengthens alert channels. Economic operators report dangerous products and serious accidents to authorities via the Safety Business Gateway, the single portal set up by the text. Alerts and recalls are published on Safety Gate, the Union's rapid alert system, publicly accessible. A recall therefore becomes visible to your customers as well as your competitors.

In the event of a recall, the consumer is entitled to a remedy: repair of the product, replacement or refund. Market surveillance is also backed by Regulation (EU) 2019/1020, which strengthens national authorities' investigative powers. Penalties are set by each Member State.

A recall translates into returns, withdrawals and crisis communication: costs that are avoidable with checks carried out upstream, while the order can still be changed.

Sorva is a brokerage and sourcing house based in Guangzhou, with a Chinese-speaking team on site. On the GPSR, we step in before the order: we settle with you which regime applies, we have the factory required to supply the risk analysis, technical documentation and safety instructions, then we check the consistency between the actual product, traceability and the file. Our Chinese-speaking team in Guangzhou runs these exchanges in Chinese with factories, which avoids misunderstandings over requirements that many factories are still discovering.

In most cases, you pay no fees: you open a file with us, we negotiate the goods for you, and we take a commission on their ex-factory value.