United Kingdom (GB) - Textiles and apparel
UKCA and compliance requirements for textiles and apparel
Clothing and textile goods. No CE/UKCA marking for ordinary garments — the load-bearing rules are general product safety, chemical restrictions and (in the US) flammability standards.
For example: t-shirt, children's pyjamas, scarf, heated jacket.
EU Textile Regulation 1007/2011 (fibre-composition labelling) applies to all textile products but is beyond this dataset — additional sector rules apply; the UK has equivalent retained labelling rules. US: flammability of wearing apparel is regulated under the Flammable Fabrics Act (16 CFR 1610; children's sleepwear 16 CFR 1615/1616) enforced by the CPSC, plus FTC fibre/care labelling — treat these as part of the us-cpsa-general workload. Children's clothing: CPSIA testing/certification applies (forChildren), drawstring rules for kids' outerwear (16 CFR 1120), and small parts on garments for under-3s; note that fancy-dress costumes count as toys in the EU/UK — verify and use the toy category for costumes. REACH matters for azo dyes, nickel in fasteners and other restricted substances. Heated/smart garments become EEE via the battery attribute; protective clothing is PPE — see ppe-safety-gear.
Base requirements1 instruments
The general safety net for consumer products in Great Britain: no producer may place a product on the market unless it is safe, and producers and distributors must monitor products and notify authorities about unsafe ones. In Northern Ireland these Regulations were superseded on 13 December 2024 by the EU General Product Safety Regulation (EU) 2023/988.
Key obligations
- 01No producer shall place a product on the market unless the product is a safe product (regulation 5) - one which under normal or reasonably foreseeable conditions of use presents no risk, or only the minimum risk compatible with the product's use.source
- 02Producers must provide consumers with the relevant information to enable them to assess the risks and take precautions, and enable traceability by indicating the producer's name and address on the product or its packaging.source
- 03Producers must monitor marketed products: sample-test them, investigate and where necessary keep a register of complaints, and keep distributors informed of the results.source
- 04Distributors must act with due care to help ensure only safe products are supplied and must not supply products that, as a professional, they know or ought to know to be dangerous (regulation 8).source
If your product also...
Extra regulations triggered by specific features
Has radio / wireless (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, cellular, GPS, RFID/NFC)
The Radio Equipment Regulations 2017The Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2012
Contains a battery
The Electromagnetic Compatibility Regulations 2016The Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2012
Connects to the internet / runs updatable software
Documents you will need
Deduplicated across the regulations above
- Traceability and monitoring recordsNo declaration of conformity or technical file is required. Producers should be able to evidence traceability (name and address on product or packaging), sample testing, complaint investigation and, where necessary, a complaints register.source
Frequently asked
Does GPSR 2005 require UKCA marking or a declaration of conformity?+
No. It is a general safety-net regulation with no conformity marking, declaration of conformity or technical file. Your obligations are that the product is safe, that consumers get the information they need, that you can trace products (name and address on the product or packaging), and that you monitor and notify.
Other markets, same product
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