The General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) replaced the old General Product Safety Directive across the EU on 13 December 2024. If you sell consumer products on Amazon’s EU marketplaces. That’s Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, or any other EU country, this regulation applies to you.
Amazon is now actively enforcing GPSR requirements, and sellers who haven’t prepared are seeing compliance requests, listing suppressions, and in some cases full account-level warnings. Here’s what you need to understand.
What is GPSR?
GPSR (Regulation 2023/988) is the EU’s updated framework for ensuring all consumer products placed on the EU market are safe. It applies to virtually every consumer product that isn’t covered by more specific sector legislation. The regulation tightens requirements around traceability, documentation, and accountability — particularly for products sold online.
The Responsible Person requirement
This is the single biggest change for Amazon sellers. Under GPSR, every consumer product sold in the EU must have a named “Responsible Person” established within the EU. This person or company is legally responsible for the safety of the product on the EU market. If you’re a UK-based seller, you cannot be your own EU Responsible Person — you need someone with an EU address. If you’re an EU-based business selling your own products, you’re likely already the Responsible Person. If you’re importing products from outside the EU, the importer typically takes on this role.
The Responsible Person’s name, registered trade name or trademark, contact details, and postal address must appear either on the product itself or on the packaging, parcel, or an accompanying document.
What Amazon is checking
Amazon has been updating product listing requirements across EU marketplaces. They’re now checking for the presence of Responsible Person information in product detail pages, verifying that compliance documentation references the correct regulation, and cross-referencing product categories against GPSR applicability. If your listings don’t include the required information, Amazon may suppress them or send you a compliance request asking you to provide it within a deadline.
What documentation you need
Under GPSR, you need to be able to provide a technical file that includes a general description of the product and its essential properties relevant to safety, an analysis of risks the product may present, evidence of how those risks have been addressed (test reports, standards compliance), and the name and address of your EU Responsible Person. You should also have a Declaration of Conformity or equivalent safety declaration, traceability information (batch numbers, model identifiers), and clear safety instructions in the languages of the markets where you sell.
How to get compliant
Start by identifying whether your products fall under GPSR or under product-specific legislation (such as the Toy Safety Directive, Low Voltage Directive, or Radio Equipment Directive). Products covered by specific legislation already have their own compliance frameworks, but GPSR may still apply to aspects not covered by those frameworks.
Next, appoint an EU Responsible Person if you don’t already have one. There are specialist service providers who offer this as a commercial service. Make sure whoever you appoint understands their legal obligations — this isn’t just a name on a label.
Then review your product documentation, labelling, and Amazon listing information to ensure everything is consistent and complete.
Don’t wait for the enforcement email
The sellers I speak to who are in the most difficulty are the ones who waited until Amazon sent them a compliance request. By that point, you’re on a deadline and under pressure. Getting ahead of GPSR now — while you have time to do it properly — is significantly less stressful and less expensive than reacting to an enforcement action.
If you’re not sure where you stand with GPSR, I can help you assess your position quickly. My Compliance Health Check covers GPSR readiness as part of a full review of your compliance documentation. Or if you just have a specific question, book a free 15-minute discovery call and I’ll point you in the right direction.