GPSR: How does it affect creators, artists and creative small businesses?

In the last few weeks, we’ve seen too many creators, artists, and creative small businesses entirely stopping shipping to the EU and Northern Ireland because of GPSR or General Product Safety Regulation. 

GPSR is an EU regulation that came into force on December 13th, 2024 and it aims to bring more safety to the market by ensuring that dangerous products don’t circle around. However, in the process of trying to regulate that, the European Parliament and the Council made life more complicated and anxious for small creative business owners, especially outside of those markets.

First, let’s see the key points of GPSR, and how it affects creators exactly, and let’s try to find the answer: how can you keep selling your creative products and artwork to consumers in the EU and Northern Ireland without facing legal troubles?

The Pearl Lemon Legal team also came to help us out and commented on the topic.

If you’d like to take a deep dive yourself, the EU’s General Product Safety Regulation or GPSR can be read here, along with the so-called ANNEX IX detailing what “works of art” is — these are the sources of all the quotes regarding the Regulation in this article, too.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: This is our, The Creators’ Diary team’s, interpretation of the GPSR but we are not legal professionals and this article cannot be taken as legal advice, even despite including comments from a law firm.

Here’s everything covered in this article — each section including our interpretation, aimed at giving you answers to “What does this mean?”:

1. What is GPSR and what is its purpose?
2. What are dangerous products according to the GPSR?
3. What products are subject to and not subject to the GPSR?
4. What is defined as “works of art” according to the GPSR?
5. What does the GPSR say about recycled and vintage products?
6. What does the GPSR say about digital products?
7. What does the GPSR say about online selling?
8. What does the GPSR say about online marketplaces?
9. What to do if your products are subject to the GPSR?
10. What happens if you don’t comply with the GPSR?

What is GPSR and what is its purpose? 

The GPSR “lays down the requirement that consumer products must be safe and… authorities must take action against dangerous products…in light of the developments related to new technologies and online selling. In particular, [the Regulation] should aim to ensure the health and safety of consumers and the functioning of the internal market as regards products intended for consumers.”

The European Commission has a good summary of the objectives of the GPSR:

• ensuring the safety of all products, including those linked to new technologies
• addressing challenges posed by the growth of online sales and in particular via online marketplaces;
• ensuring a better enforcement of the rules and more efficient and even market surveillance;
• improving the effectiveness of recalls of dangerous products in the hands of consumers.

🔍 INTERPRETATION:

This is all about the safety of products and the safety of consumers, and making sure that dangerous things don’t get into your hands. 

I think we can agree that since the dawn of the internet and especially since the birth of e-commerce, pretty weird items found their way into the market so the purpose of this regulation is timely, indeed. 

We’re good so far. Let’s move on.

What are dangerous products according to the GPSR?

“Dangerous products can have very negative consequences for consumers and citizens. All consumers, including the most vulnerable, such as children, older persons or persons with disabilities, have the right to safe products.”

In another section, the Regulation says a dangerous product is a product that is not a safe product and a safe product means “any product which, under normal or reasonably foreseeable conditions of use, including the actual duration of use, does not present any risk or only the minimum risks compatible with the product’s use, considered acceptable and consistent with a high level of protection of the health and safety of consumers”.

🔍 INTERPRETATION:

The Regulation says that we all deserve to be surrounded by safe products and that we should especially look out for children, older people and those with disabilities in this matter. Again, you don’t want dangerous items to be in anyone’s hands.

As for what counts as dangerous products? I think the Regulation here is trying to capture what common sense is. Anyhing that can present risk or cause harm when you open a package or use the product that came in it is a no-go. 

Here’s how I read this from a creator’s point of view: 

• If you send a framed illustration to a customer, you shouldn’t pack a hammer and nails with it.
• If you send a ceramic mug to a customer that has metallic parts in it, like on the edge of the mug giving it a nice aesthetic, you need to warn the consumer before and after they purchase the product that they cannot put it in a microwave oven. ‘Before’ means stating this on the site where you sell the item, ‘after’ means sending safety instructions on a piece of paper next to the product that will give the necessary information to the customer. The Regulation does talk about such instructions as well which I’ll cover in a bit.

“The safety of a product should be assessed taking into account all relevant aspects of the product, in particular its characteristics, such as the physical, mechanical and chemical characteristics, and its presentation, as well as the specific needs and risks which the product represents for certain categories of consumers who are likely to use the products, in particular children, older persons and persons with disabilities. 

Those risks can also include environmental risk insofar as it poses a risk to the health and safety of consumers. That assessment should take into account the health risk posed by digitally connected products, including the risk to mental health, especially of vulnerable consumers, in particular children…

Furthermore, if specific information is necessary to make products safe for a certain category of people, the assessment of the safety of the products should take into consideration the presence of that information and its accessibility. 

The safety of all products should be assessed taking into consideration the need for the product to be safe over its entire lifespan.”

Additionally:

“Manufacturers should draw up technical documentation regarding the products they place on the market, which should contain the necessary information to prove that those products are safe. The technical documentation should be based on an internal risk analysis carried out by the manufacturer. The amount of information to be provided in the technical documentation should be proportionate to the complexity of the product and the possible risks identified by the manufacturer. In particular, manufacturers should provide a general description of the product and the elements necessary to assess its safety.”

All details on the type of information that should be presented related to the safety of the product can be read in Chapter II, Article 6 of the Regulation but I’ll have a section dedicated to this below, too. 

🔍 INTERPRETATION:

So, you need to assess if your creative piece poses any safety concerns over the entire lifespan of its use. This might sound ridiculous for the first moment but as the Regulation points out, think about specific groups like children and people with disabilities. 

If you’re not a kid and or an adult with disabilities, you may not think that a medal for a necklace poses a risk or that the paint on a ceramic lamp can be harmful to health, but those mentioned groups can easily be subjected to those dangers. 

A medal can be chocked on and the paint can be toxic (unless you use the right kind, of course, which I’m sure you do but this is just an example here) — I know these might seem like a far stretch now, but I’m certain that these sections of the GPSR are meant to bring more good than bad into anyone’s lives.

Yes, as mentioned, you also need to signal any possible dangers when presenting for sale, packaging, and sending the item to customers, and that’s undoubtedly an extra step you likely haven’t had to deal with before but it’s probably the good kind of sacrifice here. 
I know, easy for me to say. There are product instructions manual guides already out there on how to quickly put together a safety instruction doc though, but we may see more in the future specific to creative products, too.

What products are subject to and not subject to the GPSR?

First, let’s see what is excluded.

“Member States shall not impede the making available on the market of products covered by Directive 2001/95/EC which are in conformity with that Directive and which were placed on the market before 13 December 2024.”

🔍 INTERPRETATION:

Now, this generally means that products placed on the market before 13 December 2024, so before the GPSR applies, are out of its scope. You don’t have to worry about them.

With that said, myriads of creators I know and follow have seasonal items and rounds of shop uploads from time to time, meaning that they create new items over weeks or months. 

Therefore, the above fact will not be much help to them but of course, if you are a creator who has an available product from before 13 December 2014, and (I assume) you can prove it too, you should be good in this area.

All right, let’s keep going.

The Regulation does not apply to (as a creator, you can jump to the last item 👇):

• “medicinal products for human or veterinary use;
• food;
• feed;
• living plants and animals, genetically modified organisms and genetically modified microorganisms in contained use, as well as products of plants and animals relating directly to their future reproduction;
• animal by-products and derived products;
• plant protection products;
• equipment on which consumers ride or travel where that equipment is directly operated by a service provider within the context of a transport service provided to consumers and is not operated by the consumers themselves;
• aircraft referred to in Article 2(3), point (d) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1139;
• antiques”.

If you don’t understand why medicine or food is not subject to the GPSR, it’s because those categories are assessed and regulated under different and very strict analyses anyway so the GPSR doesn’t need to cover them separately.

Let’s focus on that last one. Antiques.

“‘Antiques’ means products, such as collectors’ items or works of art, in relation to which consumers cannot reasonably expect that they fulfil state-of-the-art safety standards.”

🔍 INTERPRETATION:

The GPRS also details that ‘antiques’, which then include works of art, can’t be expected to meet the safety requirements laid down by this Regulation and this is why they are excluded from its scope. 

So far, so good. But then it says:

“However, in order to prevent other products from being mistakenly considered as belonging to those categories, 

it is necessary to take into account that works of art are products created solely for artistic purposes, 

that collectors’ items are of sufficient rarity and historical or scientific interest to justify their collection and preservation, and that antiques, if they are not already works of art or collectors’ items or both, are of an extraordinary age. When assessing whether a product is an antique, such as a work of art or a collector’s item, Annex IX to Council Directive 2006/112/EC could be taken into account.”

So a product of a creator to be categorized under ‘antiques’ or works of art, has to be created solely for artistic purposes. What does that mean? What falls into this category?

I did look at that ANNEX IX and found the following definitions. 

What is defined as “works of art” according to the GPSR?

I’ll stick to direct quotes first to avoid any confusion, then you’ll see my interpretation.

 “(1) Pictures, collages and similar decorative plaques, paintings and drawings, executed entirely by hand by the artist,…;

(2) original engravings, prints and lithographs, being impressions produced in limited numbers directly in black and white or in colour of one or of several plates executed entirely by hand by the artist,…;

(3) original sculptures and statuary, in any material, provided that they are executed entirely by the artist; sculpture casts the production of which is limited to eight copies and supervised by the artist or his successors in title…;

(4) tapestries… and wall textiles… made by hand from original designs provided by artists, provided that there are not more than eight copies of each;

(5) individual pieces of ceramics executed entirely by the artist and signed by him;

(6) enamels on copper, executed entirely by hand, limited to eight numbered copies bearing the signature of the artist or the studio, excluding articles of jewellery and goldsmiths’ and silversmiths’ wares;

(7) photographs taken by the artist, printed by him or under his supervision, signed and numbered and limited to 30 copies, all sizes and mounts included.

PART B

Collectors’ items

(1) Postage or revenue stamps, postmarks, first-day covers, pre-stamped stationery and the like, used, or if unused not current and not intended to be current…;

(2) collections and collectors’ pieces of zoological, botanical, mineralogical, anatomical, historical, archaeological, palaeontological, ethnographic or numismatic interest….

PART C

Antiques

Goods, other than works of art or collectors’ items, which are more than 100 years old….”

🔍 INTERPRETATION:

According to the GPSR, an item is a work of art if it is created solely for artistic purposes. And if that checks out, that work of art won’t be subject to the Regulation.

Finding examples always helps me decide the meaning behind such definitions, so let’s do that now, too, and of course, from a creator’s perspective.

• Is a silver ring created solely for artistic purposes?
• Is a ceramic mug created solely for artistic purposes?
• Is a plush toy created solely for artistic purposes?
• Is a sticker created solely for artistic purposes?
• Is a board game created solely for artistic purposes?

Maybe you see what I’m hinting at with the above questions. 

Items like rings and mugs are functional designs. You wear a ring, you drink from a mug, you play with a plushie, you decorate something with a sticker and you use a board game for hours of fun. Sure, this doesn’t mean that they are not artistic. 

Yet, if I stick to the wording of the GPSR, they are not solely for artistic purposes, so they are not considered ‘works of art’ here and therefore, are subject to the GPSR. 

This awfully reminds me of the situation with design copyright that I wrote about in this article. (TLDR: copyright law grants protection for artwork but not for items that are functional, and more specifically and even more confusingly, it only protects the creative portions of functional items.)

Long story short, if you create anything, I would ask this question: Is what you make a functional design or is it created solely for artistic purposes? If it’s functional or both, I’d say it’s probably in the scope of the GPSR.

Based in London, one of the fields Pearl Lemon Legal specializies in is business law and I’ve managed to get in touch with them regarding this Regulation. They confirmed my way of thinking that GPSR and ANNEX IX mainly talks about fine art categories like paintings and sculptures when defining “works of art” which feels limiting for many creators today and makes it tricky to decide if your product is subject to the Regulation or not:

“The ambiguity arises with creative products serving artistic and functional purposes. For example, a decorative mug is unlikely to qualify as a “work of art” under the regulation because it is a functional product intended for consumption. Conversely, while artistic, a creatively designed plush toy would likely fall within the scope of the regulation due to its nature as a consumer product, especially one that may be used by children. For creators, the key consideration is whether their product has any utilitarian function. It is prudent to assume it falls under the GPSR’s jurisdiction if it does.”

Pearl Lemon Legal

What does the GPSR say about recycled and vintage products?

“The requirements laid down in this Regulation should apply to second-hand products or products that are repaired, reconditioned or recycled, that re-enter the supply chain in the course of a commercial activity, except for those products for which the consumer cannot reasonably expect that they fulfil state-of-the art safety standards, such as products which are explicitly presented as to be repaired or to be reconditioned, or which are made available on the market as collectible items of historical significance.”

🔍 INTERPRETATION:

I’ve seen many creators asking about vintage and recycled creative works and whether those are in the scope of the Regulation. Based on the above quote, my interpretation is that they are. “Recycled” is specifically mentioned there. 

When it comes to vintage, well, there’s nothing about there but based on my research, vintage is considered to be “younger than antiques” or “anything between the ages of twenty to ninety-nine” but it also has a secondary definition of “a period of origin or manufacture”. In any way, if we’re trying to find a concrete answer there, it seems that while antiques are not subject to the GPSR, vintage items might be.

The Pearl Lemon Legal team also commented on this:

“Creative products or artwork incorporating recycled materials, the GPSR includes recycled goods within its scope. This means that creators using recycled components, such as gold or other materials in jewellery, must demonstrate that their products meet the same safety standards as those made with new materials. This involves ensuring that recycled components do not introduce hazards, such as toxicity or structural weaknesses. For vintage goods, the regulation does exclude antiques, which are defined as items over 100 years old. However, upcycled or repurposed vintage products are treated as “new” and must comply with GPSR safety requirements.“

Pearl Lemon Legal

What does the GPRS say about digital products?

I’ve seen some confusion among creators (of digital illustrations, for instance) about this, but this Q&A guidance document released by the European Commission states that digital products, even software are subject to the Regulation. 

If you create digital art and other types of creative digital content, it’s safe to assume that your products are not exempt from the GPSR.

I think this is one of the sub-topics that will need a lot of clarification. My assumption is that the lawmakers here intend to put protective measures on digital products because, as mentioned before, there are some that might have dangerous implications on certain groups such as children. 

A digital illustration may not be harmful to people at first but a lot depends on its content and message, doesn’t it? I know of creators who create wonderful digital art that, based on its content, is suitable for adults but definitely not for kids. 

How would it end up with a kid, you ask? In an ideal world, it wouldn’t happen but ours is not that, so I’ll say: digital data flies even faster than something physical and if we think back on the purposes of this Regulation, it aims to protect the health and safety of people — and that includes mental health. 

Plus, the GPSR tells you to protect yourself as a “manufacturer” (creator), too. In a case like the above, you could say that your art is suited for an 18+ audience and the cards would be stacked differently already.

What does the GPSR say about online selling?

“Distance selling, including online selling, should also fall within the scope of this Regulation. Online selling has grown consistently and steadily, creating new business models, new challenges regarding product safety and new actors in the market, such as providers of online marketplaces…”

🔍 INTERPRETATION:

The above section really speaks for itself. If you sell a product online, it falls under the scope of the Regulation. After all, one of the main reasons for coming up with such a regulation is to make sure that in the era of digital shopping and due to the nature of the internet activities that are harder to legally oversee, steps need to be taken to ensure that whatever you buy on the internet will be safe for use. 

There’s one more important thing to mention here and I’m back to the example of digital illustrations with this. I’ve seen many creators posting that they create digital illustrations and since the Regulation says that drawings are included in the category of works of art and works of art are not subject to the GPSR, they are free to keep selling their illustrations to the EU and Northern Ireland. 

My interpretation is different here. Considering that the Regulation separately describes that online selling is within the scope of it, and digital illustrations (or other creative items made available for customers digitally) are by nature can only be sold online, I say the GPSR applies to those as well. 

Naturally, this is one of the more complex areas of the Regulation that needs to be clarified sooner or later from the lawmakers. 

What does the GPSR say about online marketplaces?

The GPSR talks about online marketplaces as well so if you sell on Etsy and similar ecommerce platforms, rest assured there are important bits to learn here.

The regulation in general states that these online marketplaces have “a crucial role in the supply chain” and “providers of online marketplaces when intermediating the sale of products between traders and consumers, such actors should have more responsibilities in tackling the sale of dangerous products online”.

Related to the previous section on enforcement of the Regulation, providers of online marketplaces also have to act “in accordance with the specific obligations laid down in this Regulation” and need to follow obligations “in relation to the content hosted on their online interfaces that concerns product safety.”

For this purpose, providers of online marketplaces need to take certain steps towards the Commission, such as designating a single point of contact for consumers for communications on product safety issues and cooperating with market surveillance authorities.

“Provider of an online marketplace” definition in the GPSR “‘provider of an online marketplace’ means a provider of an intermediary service using an online interface which allows consumers to conclude distance contracts with traders for the sale of products”

What can an online marketplace do with your product if it doesn’t meet the safety requirements laid down in the GPSR?

According to the GPSR, providers of online marketplaces:

• “Should remove content referring to an offer of a dangerous product from their online interfaces expeditiously, upon obtaining actual knowledge or, in the case of claims for damages, upon becoming aware of the content referring to an offer of a dangerous product…”
• “Are encouraged to check products with Safety Gate Portal before placing them on their interface.”
• “Should not allow a specific product offer to be listed on their platforms unless the trader has provided all information related to product safety and traceability as specified in this Regulation. Such information should be displayed together with the product listing so that consumers can benefit from the same information made available online and offline. However, providers of online marketplaces should not be responsible for verifying the completeness, correctness and the accuracy of the information itself, as the obligation to ensure the traceability of products lies with the relevant trader.”

🔍 INTERPRETATION:

Online marketplaces, where you upload and sell your products, can check your products in relation to the safety requirements of the Regulation, and whether they find compliance issues or a customer alerts them of it not meeting the requirements, they can remove that product from their site.

Online marketplaces can remove your products from their site if you don’t comply with the GPSR in relation to product safety.

These marketplaces should also only allow listing a product on their sites if the trader (that’s you here) has provided (both off- and online) all the safety and traceability information related to the product as demanded by the Regulation. 

However, online marketplaces are not responsible for presenting and showcasing the appropriate safety and traceability information of the product — Who is? The trader. You.

So, if you sell products on online marketplaces, you’ll need to make sure that you comply with the GPSR if you keep shipping your items to the EU and Northern Ireland. Alternatively, you can stop the delivery to these markets or decide listing by listing which products of yours are safe to enter these markets based on the requirements of the Regulation.

GPSR & Etsy

Etsy has updated its seller handbook with information and resources regarding the GPSR and I’d highlight a few parts from it:

• Etsy is unable to advise whether or not the GPSR applies to you and says that you may want to consult a legal professional with further questions.
• Etsy is actively working on finding a solution for those who want to discontinue their offerings on the site to the EU and Northern Ireland and “will provide an update on timing by December 31, 2024”.

GPSR & eBay

eBay has published this and this guide to help its sellers in the topic of GPSR. They also introduced new functionality so you can easily add the newly needed information to your listings and ensure compliance with the Regulation. This includes adding a manufacturer or an EU Responsible Person to your listings.

GPSR & Amazon

Amazon has published this article on the subject and like other online marketplaces warns sellers “You must…submit the required information for listings on our EU-based stores.”

So, to confirm once again: if you sell products on online marketplaces like the above-mentioned sites and that may be subject to the GPSR, you need to take full responsibility for your products’ compliance with the Regulation. 

What to do if your products are subject to the GPSR?

If your products are subject to the GPSR, these are the things you have to take care of:

1. The safety of your products and achieving that safety as defined in the Regulation: You are “obliged to place only safe products on the market”….and “When placing their products on the market, manufacturers shall ensure that those products have been designed and manufactured in accordance with the general safety requirement laid down in Article 5.”
   • The Safety of your products must be achieved through:
     • “the design and the features of the product, taking into account the intended and foreseeable use and conditions of use of the product. The remaining risks, if any, should be alleviated by means of certain safeguards, such as warnings and instructions.”
     • “the characteristics of the product, including its design, technical features, composition, packaging, instructions for assembly and, where applicable, for installation, use and maintenance;
     • “the presentation of the product, the labelling, including the labelling regarding age suitability for children, any warnings and instructions for its safe use and disposal, and any other indication or information regarding the product;”
2. Internal risk analysis and technical documentation of the products: “Before placing their products on the market, manufacturers shall carry out an internal risk analysis and draw up technical documentation containing at least a general description of the product and its essential characteristics relevant for assessing its safety.”
   • You must have up-to-date technical documentation of your products for 10 years after the product has been first put on the market:
     • “Manufacturers shall.. keep that documentation at the disposal of the market surveillance authorities for a period of 10 years after the product has been placed on the market and make that documentation available to those authorities upon request.”
3. Having a responsible economic operator or authorized representative which can be either you or a person you assign these roles: 
   • You have to “ensure that there is a responsible economic operator established in the Union,… providing market surveillance authorities with an interlocutor and, where appropriate with regard to the possible risks related to a product, performing specific tasks in a timely manner to ensure that the products are safe. Those specific tasks should include regular checks with regard to compliance with the technical documentation, product and manufacturer information, instruction and safety information.”
4. Labelling your products easily visible and legible for consumers to enable their identification, such as a batch or serial number:
   • “Manufacturers shall ensure that their products bear a type, batch or serial number or other element enabling the identification of the product and which is easily visible and legible for consumers, or, where the size or nature of the product does not allow it, that the required information is provided on the packaging or in a document accompanying the product.”
5. Attaching information about the manufacturer and the economic operator, such as registered trade name, postal and electronic address:
   • “Manufacturers shall indicate their name, their registered trade name or registered trade mark, their postal and electronic address and, where different, the postal or electronic address of the single contact point at which they can be contacted. That information shall be placed on the product or, where that is not possible, on its packaging or in a document accompanying the product.”
   • “The name, registered trade name or registered trade mark, and contact details, including the postal and electronic address, of the economic operator… shall be indicated on the product or on its packaging, the parcel or an accompanying document.
6. Attaching clear instructions and safety information in a language consumers easily understand, determined by the country in which the product is available on the market: 
   • “Manufacturers shall ensure that their product is accompanied by clear instructions and safety information in a language which can be easily understood by consumers, as determined by the Member State in which the product is made available on the market. That requirement shall not apply where the product can be used safely and as intended by the manufacturer without such instructions and safety information.”
7. Taking corrective measures regarding the safety of the product if necessary: 
   • “Where a manufacturer considers or has reason to believe, on the basis of the information in that manufacturer’s possession, that a product which it has placed on the market is a dangerous product, the manufacturer shall immediately:
     • take the corrective measures necessary to bring in an effective manner the product into conformity, including a withdrawal or recall, as appropriate;
     • “inform consumers thereof… “
     • “inform, through the Safety Business Gateway, the market surveillance authorities of the Member States in which the product has been made available on the market thereof.”
8. Meeting accessibility needs:
   • “Manufacturers shall make publicly available communication channels such as a telephone number, electronic address or dedicated section of their website, taking into account accessibility needs for persons with disabilities, enabling consumers to submit complaints and to inform manufacturers of any accident or safety issue they have experienced with a product.”

3 terms from the GPSR worth knowing “‘manufacturer’ means any natural or legal person who manufactures a product or has a product designed or manufactured, and markets that product under that person’s name or trademark;” “‘authorised representative’ means any natural or legal person established within the Union who has received a written mandate from a manufacturer to act on that manufacturer’s behalf in relation to specified tasks with regard to the manufacturer’s obligations under this Regulation;” “‘economic operator’ means the manufacturer, the authorized representative, the importer, the distributor, the fulfilment service provider or any other natural or legal person who is subject to obligations in relation to the manufacture of products or making them available on the market in accordance with this Regulation;” 🔍 INTERPRETATION: – The manufacturer is (likely) you as the creator of your products – The authorized representative can be you as a natural person or a legal representation who is ready to meet the obligations of this Regulation and cooperate with authorities if necessary – The economic operator can be either you, a legal representation, an importer, a distributor, or a fulfillment service provider (responsible for warehousing, packaging, shipping, etc.) you may work with to create and distribute your products, and again, this can be a natural or a legal person

The Pearl Lemon Legal team gave us some pointers on the different roles defined in the GPSR, including who can be an EU-based authorized representative:

The appointment of a Responsible Person (RP) in the EU is a requirement for any creator or business outside the EU that markets products to EU consumers. The term “manufacturer” in the regulation often confuses, as many creators do not identify as such, but if they are making and selling products, they fall within this category. A Responsible Person can be an individual or organisation based in the EU, such as a distributor, importer, or compliance consultant. Creators can establish a relationship with EU-based representatives by partnering with distributors, hiring specialised compliance services, or engaging legal representatives experienced in EU regulations. For example, a ceramic artist making mugs and selling them to EU customers through an online store would need to appoint an RP to manage compliance documentation, labelling, and liaising with authorities if necessary.

Pearl Lemon Legal

❗We’ve seen a few new services appearing from the ground offering people services to make GPSR compliance easy and help with having an authorized representative in the EU specifically to comply with the Regulation. We advise you to be cautious and vigilant if going on this path.

Chapter III of the Regulation covers “Obligation of Economic Operators”, including those of manufacturers, authorized representatives, importers and distributors.

What happens if you don’t comply with the GPSR?

The European Commission may take certain measures if it becomes aware of a product that presents serious risks to the health and safety of consumers, such as:

• Prohibit, suspend, or restrict the placing or making available on the market of products
• Lay down special conditions for the conformity assessments of products concerning the safety requirement
• Lay down special conditions for the marketing of the products such as representative sample testing

Furthermore, the Member States (of the EU):

• Need to take the appropriate enforcement measures necessary to ensure the effective implementation of the above steps
• “Shall lay down the rules on penalties applicable to infringements of this Regulation that impose obligations on economic operators and providers of online marketplaces… implemented in accordance with national law… The penalties provided for shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.”

🔍 INTERPRETATION:

While not being too specific, the first points above tell us that the Commission can make you change how a product is made or presented if it seems to risk the health and safety of consumers and it can also forbid you from placing it on the market fully or limit its availability to a certain extent.

Plus, the Member States will be the ones responsible for implementing any enforcement measures. They are also in charge of figuring out what the specific penalties shall be but, and this is familiar idea in law, those should be “effective, proportionate and dissuasive”. The part “propotionate” means that the punishment of a crime should be in proportion to the severity of the crime itself.

Chapter VII, Article 28 covers all the details on the “enforcement” of the Regulation.

What’s next?

We are waiting for the European Commission to issue a practical guide for small-and medium-sized businesses, including creators like you and the small creative businesses that you own. 

As written in the GPSR, “the Commission should provide practical guidelines and tailored guidance, for example a direct channel to connect to experts in the event of questions, taking into account the need to simplify and limit their administrative burdens.”

Furthermore, there should be an opportunity forming for consumers and related parties to submit complaints to the competent authorities “on product safety, on surveillance and control activities related to specific products as well as on instances where remedies offered to consumers in the case of product recalls are not satisfactory.” 

You, being a related party, should then have a place to turn to in the future to ask about the subjects mentioned above — we don’t know when but this is supposed to happen. 

In the meantime, you should monitor official EU channels, such as regulatory websites, and seek advice from compliance experts if possible. We’ll do our best to keep covering this topic as extensively as possible, too and we’ll share any new information worth sharing.

_{Featured image by Tingey Injury Law Firm}