Consumer goods compliance obligations in 2024–2026 span a mix of requirements already in force and a pipeline of incoming changes driven by the EU's ESPR framework, the new Toy Safety Regulation, and evolving UK product regulation. Unlike industries where compliance is resolved at point of market entry, consumer goods compliance requires continuous monitoring — the REACH SVHC Candidate List is updated twice yearly, the GPSR created new Responsible Person obligations from December 2024 that applied immediately to existing market participants, and ESPR is introducing product-specific delegated acts on a rolling basis from 2026. The EU Safety Gate recorded 4,137 product safety alerts in 2024 — the highest annual total since the system launched — a signal that market surveillance enforcement is accelerating, not stabilising.
What follows is the current compliance calendar for the four largest consumer goods markets, organised by jurisdiction and covering both requirements now in force and upcoming obligations that require advance preparation.
European Union — GPSR, REACH, RoHS, and ESPR
13 December 2024 — EU GPSR Binding: EU Responsible Person Now Mandatory
Regulation (EU) 2023/988 became binding on 13 December 2024. All consumer products not covered by more specific EU safety legislation must have a designated EU Responsible Person with a full name and physical EU address displayed on or with the product. Online marketplaces are required under Article 22 to register with the EU Safety Gate, verify that Responsible Person details are present in product listings, and cooperate with authorities to remove non-compliant products. Businesses that continued operating under the predecessor General Product Safety Directive without reviewing their GPSR compliance position are in breach. There is no transition period — the obligation applied from 13 December 2024.
Ongoing — REACH SVHC Candidate List: Continuous Monitoring Required
The REACH SVHC Candidate List maintained by ECHA now contains 253 substances following the addition of n-Hexane and BPAF in February 2026. Any article containing a listed SVHC above 0.1% by weight triggers mandatory supplier notification obligations and, for B2C products, a consumer information obligation on request within 45 days. There is no grace period from the date of listing — the obligation applies immediately when ECHA adds a substance. Businesses must maintain active SVHC screening frameworks that are reviewed and updated after each of ECHA's twice-yearly list updates. Source: ECHA.
19 July 2026 — ESPR: Prohibition on Destruction of Unsold Consumer Products (Large Enterprises)
Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 entered into force on 18 July 2024. From 19 July 2026, large enterprises are prohibited from destroying unsold consumer products. Medium enterprises are included from 19 July 2027. The Digital Product Passport registry is due to become operational in July 2026. Product-specific delegated acts under ESPR — covering textiles and steel among the earliest categories — are anticipated from 2026, with transition periods of at least 18 months before sector-specific obligations apply. Most sector-specific ESPR requirements are expected to take effect from 2027 or 2028.
1 January 2026 / 1 August 2030 — New EU Toy Safety Regulation (EU) 2025/2509
Regulation (EU) 2025/2509 entered into force on 1 January 2026. Toys compliant with the predecessor Toy Safety Directive 2009/48/EC may continue to be marketed until 1 August 2030, when the Directive ceases to apply entirely. From 1 August 2030, all toys placed on the EU market must comply with the new Regulation. The transition window gives manufacturers time to map their product ranges against new requirements, but the 4+ year window should not create complacency — the new Regulation introduces stricter requirements for chemical safety, digital toys, and traceability, and testing and documentation programmes will need to be built in advance of the August 2030 deadline.
United Kingdom — CE Marking, UKCA, and Evolving Legislation
1 October 2024 — CE Marking Accepted Indefinitely in Great Britain
The UK Product Safety and Metrology (Amendment) Regulations 2024 came into force on 1 October 2024, removing the previous 31 December 2024 deadline for mandatory UKCA marking and confirming that CE marking is accepted indefinitely in Great Britain for 21 product regulations — including toys, radio equipment, machinery, low voltage electrical equipment, and EMC requirements. For most consumer product categories, CE marking remains a valid route to GB market access without a separate UKCA conformity assessment. Source: UK Government.
2026 Onwards — UK Product Regulation and Metrology Act 2025: Secondary Legislation
The Product Regulation and Metrology Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 21 July 2025. The Act itself does not impose new requirements on businesses but creates the legal framework for ministers to update UK product safety and metrology rules through secondary legislation. The scope of UK-EU alignment versus divergence under this Act will be determined by secondary legislation expected to begin from 2026. Businesses should monitor UK Government guidance for sector-specific changes affecting their product categories.
United States — CPSIA, FCC, and Proposition 65
Active — CPSIA: Third-Party Testing and Children's Product Certificates Required Before Import
The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act 2008 requires mandatory third-party testing by a CPSC-accepted accredited laboratory and a Children's Product Certificate before any children's product is imported into or sold in the United States. The obligation applies at the point of import — CPSC has authority to detain shipments and issue mandatory recalls for non-compliant products. Lead limits (100 ppm total in substrate materials), phthalate concentration limits in toys and childcare articles, and tracking label requirements must all be verified before the first shipment. Re-testing is required on material changes to design, manufacturing process, or component sourcing.
December 2025 — Proposition 65: Bisphenol S (BPS) Reproductive Toxicity Warning Required
California's Proposition 65 list was updated to include bisphenol S (BPS) with a reproductive toxicity endpoint, effective December 2025. Any consumer product sold in California that contains BPS above the safe harbour level must carry a Proposition 65 warning. Vinyl acetate was added earlier in January 2025. With the Prop 65 list now exceeding 1,000 chemicals, businesses exporting consumer goods to the US should conduct regular substance screening against the current list — the list is updated throughout the year, and additions are effective 12 months after listing.
China — CCC Certification and Active Requirements
Active — China CCC: Pre-Market Certification Required for 109 Product Categories
China Compulsory Certification (CCC) is mandatory before manufacture, importation, or sale of any product within China's 109-product, 17-category CCC Catalogue — including electrical appliances, audio/video equipment, IT and telecommunications equipment, lighting, motor vehicles, children's products, and household gas appliances. The CCC mark must be affixed to each unit before sale. Certification involves laboratory testing by a CNCA-designated laboratory, factory inspection, and annual surveillance audits. Lead times typically range from 3 to 9 months. Any business planning Chinese market entry for a CCC-listed product must begin the certification process well in advance of the target launch date. Source: China Certification.
Active — China RoHS: Materials Declaration Mandatory for EEE Products
China's Management Methods for Restriction of the Use of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Products (China RoHS) requires all EEE products sold in China to include a Materials Declaration identifying whether the six restricted substances (lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, PBBs, PBDEs) are present above concentration limits. Products meeting concentration limits carry a green circle mark; those exceeding limits must display the expected environmental use period in an orange square. EEE products subject to CCC certification must also satisfy China RoHS requirements as part of the CCC process. Compliance with EU RoHS does not satisfy China RoHS requirements — the declaration and marking formats are distinct.
Planning Across Markets
The consumer goods compliance calendar is unusual in that it combines requirements already in force — GPSR, REACH SVHC monitoring, CPSIA, CCC — with a pipeline of future obligations that require advance preparation now. The ESPR product destruction ban (July 2026), the new EU Toy Safety Regulation (August 2030 full application), and UK secondary legislation under the PRMA 2025 each have different lead times but share a common characteristic: the businesses best positioned when formal obligations apply are those that began preparatory work years earlier.
For businesses selling across all four markets, the compliance calendar requires active management rather than periodic review. The REACH SVHC list alone creates an obligation to reassess product compliance twice per year without any change to the product. The GPSR obligation applied from December 2024 with no transition — businesses that have not yet confirmed EU Responsible Person appointments and updated their product listings are operating outside the regulation today. In the US, CPSC enforcement of CPSIA obligations is ongoing and applies to every inbound shipment of children's products.
Deadline approaching?
TGC reviews your consumer goods portfolio against GPSR, REACH SVHC, RoHS, CE/UKCA marking, CPSIA, CCC, and ESPR requirements — identifying what needs to change, and by when.
Talk to an expert → Book an audit