GPSR Compliance for EU Sellers: What Actually Changed in December 2024

If you sell into the EU, you have probably seen a wave of messages about GPSR compliance EU sellers, Responsible Persons, safety documents, and Amazon asking for more information than it did a year ago. The short version is simple: the old product safety framework is gone, the new one started applying on 13 December 2024, and it gives marketplaces and authorities much less patience for vague or missing product information. Article 50 and Article 52 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988

What makes this confusing is that GPSR is not the same thing as CE marking. It covers general consumer product safety, including products that never needed CE marking, and it also changes what needs to be shown online. EUR-Lex summary of the General Product Safety Regulation

First, what did GPSR replace?

The General Product Safety Regulation replaced the old General Product Safety Directive from 2001, which is why so many older blog posts and supplier explanations are now out of date. The new law is Regulation (EU) 2023/988, and unlike the old directive, it applies directly across the EU. European Commission general product safety page EUR-Lex GPSR summary

The EU says the new framework was built to respond to digitalisation and the growing amount of products sold online. EUR-Lex GPSR summary

The 4 changes that actually matter for sellers

There are lots of legal details in the general product safety regulation, but most sellers only need to get four practical changes straight.

1. A Responsible Person is now front and center for non-EU sellers

Under Article 16, a product generally cannot be placed on the EU market unless there is an economic operator established in the Union responsible for certain compliance tasks. The regulation lists an EU manufacturer, importer, authorised representative, or fulfilment service provider as possible options. Article 16 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988

In plain English, if you are selling from outside the EU, you usually need an EU-based Responsible Person or another qualifying operator in the chain. If you are already established in the EU and you are the manufacturer or importer placing the product on the market, you are usually that responsible operator yourself. Article 16 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988

2. Traceability is no longer optional admin

GPSR puts a lot of weight on identification details. Manufacturers must make sure products carry a type, batch, serial number, or another identifying element, and they must show their name, trade name or trademark, and postal and electronic address on the product, packaging, or accompanying document. Article 9 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988

Importers have their own identification duty too. They must indicate their name, trade name or trademark, and postal and electronic address on the product, packaging, or accompanying document, and they must keep a copy of the technical documentation for 10 years after the product is placed on the market. Article 11 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988

3. Online listings now have to show more safety information

Article 19 brings product safety into distance selling rules. For online or other distance-sale offers, the listing must clearly and visibly show the manufacturer’s name, postal and electronic address, the Responsible Person’s contact details when the manufacturer is not established in the EU, product identification details, and warnings or safety information in a language consumers can easily understand in the target member state. Article 19 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988

4. Enforcement got sharper, especially online

The new regime gives authorities and marketplaces more structured powers and obligations around unsafe products. Article 22 requires online marketplaces to register in the Safety Gate Portal, set up points of contact for authorities and consumers, and act without undue delay on product safety orders, including removing or disabling access to dangerous product content. Article 22 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988

The European Commission’s 2024 Safety Gate report says GPSR strengthened traceability for dangerous products sold online and introduced new rules for online platforms and compliance checks from December 2024. Safety Gate 2024 report

That is the practical reason this is showing up inside seller dashboards now. Marketplaces are not being fussy for fun. They are adapting to a system that now expects them to react faster and keep better records.

What “Responsible Person” really means

Under GPSR, the EU-based operator is there to perform specific compliance-related tasks tied to product safety and documentation. Article 16 points back to Article 4(3) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020, which covers checks linked to technical documentation, product identification, manufacturer and importer details, and instructions or safety information. Article 16 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988

So the Responsible Person is not a decorative address. It is a real compliance contact in the EU, and their name and contact details also need to appear on the product, packaging, parcel, or an accompanying document. Article 16(3) of Regulation (EU) 2023/988 Amazon seller forum discussion quoting seller help

If you are an EU seller importing and selling under your own company, you usually do not need a separate Responsible Person service just to create distance from the role. In many cases, you are already the EU economic operator the regulation is asking for. If you are outside the EU, sort this out before listings get challenged.

Does GPSR create a new Declaration of Conformity requirement?

This is where a lot of advice online gets sloppy.

GPSR itself does not create a blanket Declaration of Conformity requirement for every consumer product. The regulation requires manufacturers to prepare internal risk analysis and technical documentation, and it requires importers and responsible operators to keep or provide documentation when authorities ask for it, but the GPSR text does not impose a universal DoC across all products. Article 9, Article 11, and Article 16 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988

Where the Declaration of Conformity still matters is for products covered by EU harmonisation legislation, meaning the usual CE-marked categories such as electronics, radio equipment, toys, and similar regulated products. GPSR applies to general product safety, and it complements sector-specific laws rather than replacing them. EUR-Lex GPSR summary

So if you sell a Bluetooth lamp, GPSR does not erase your CE paperwork. You still need the right CE documentation, including the DoC where the relevant directive requires it. If you sell a non-CE product like some simple household goods, GPSR still expects traceability, safety information, and a document trail that shows you assessed the product properly.

What Amazon is actually asking sellers to submit

Amazon made this much more visible in 2024. In a Seller Central announcement about proving GPSR compliance on the Account Health page, Amazon said sellers in EU stores need to add three things: EU Responsible Person information, manufacturer contact information, and warning and safety PDFs or images, unless that last part is not required for the product. Amazon Seller Central announcement

Amazon also said that after 13 December 2024, if it becomes aware of non-compliant offers, including invalid information or expired contracts, it will deactivate those offers. Amazon Seller Central announcement

That usually means uploading or confirming:

• Manufacturer details: legal name, postal address, and email address.
• EU Responsible Person details: if you are outside the EU, the EU-based operator’s legal name, postal address, and email address.
• Safety and warning material: product manual, safety sheet, warning label images, packaging images, or another accepted document type that shows the required consumer-facing information. Amazon seller forum guidance on warning and safety documents
• For CE products: the right test reports and Declaration of Conformity in your own compliance file, even if Amazon does not ask for them first.

GPSR vs CE marking: the connection sellers need to understand

The cleanest way to think about it is this: GPSR covers general consumer product safety across the EU, while CE marking applies to specific product categories covered by harmonised legislation. The EU’s own summary says GPSR complements more specific EU safety legislation by covering additional aspects and risks not addressed there. European Commission trade summary on GPSR

If your product needs CE marking, GPSR does not remove that obligation. If your product does not need CE marking, GPSR may still apply fully. That is also why using your supplier’s paperwork blindly is risky: supplier documents may help prove testing, but the seller or importer placing the product on the EU market still needs the correct legal entity details, document trail, and listing information lined up.

GPSR compliance checklist for EU sellers

If you want a practical order of operations, do it like this.

1. Work out whether you are the EU operator or need one. If you are based in the EU and importing or selling the product yourself, you are often the operator the law expects. If you are outside the EU, appoint an EU-based Responsible Person or confirm which EU-based operator in your chain fills that role.
2. Fix your identity details. Make sure the manufacturer details, importer details if relevant, and Responsible Person details if relevant are accurate, complete, and consistent across packaging, inserts, and seller files.
3. Add traceability. Every product should be identifiable by model, SKU, batch, or serial reference that can be matched back to your records. Article 9 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988
4. Review your warnings and instructions. If the product needs safety instructions, make sure they are written in language consumers in the target market can understand and that the same logic shows up in your online listing. Article 19 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988
5. Build a real product file. Keep risk assessment notes, technical documents, test reports, manuals, label artwork, and packaging proofs together instead of scattered across email threads.
6. For CE products, verify your directive set and DoC. GPSR does not replace CE compliance, so check that your Declaration of Conformity names the right directives, standards, and legal entity.
7. Update your marketplace submissions. On Amazon, fill in the manufacturer and Responsible Person fields and upload safety documents or images where required. Amazon Seller Central announcement
8. Do not wait for a takedown notice. Amazon already said it may deactivate non-compliant offers after 13 December 2024, so this is the kind of admin that is boring right up until it becomes expensive. Amazon Seller Central announcement

The mistakes that keep causing problems

The common mistakes are predictable: assuming GPSR only affects risky-looking products even though it reaches ordinary consumer goods sold online, treating the Responsible Person as a checkbox, relying on a supplier’s generic certificate pack, and forgetting that the listing itself now matters too. European Commission trade summary on GPSR

What to do now

If your products are already selling in the EU, start by splitting your catalog into two groups: products that need CE marking and products that do not. Then check who the EU operator is for each one, whether the packaging and listing show the right information, and whether your safety documents are organised enough to send on demand.

If you sell CE-marked products and the hardest part is creating the right Declaration of Conformity with the right company name, directives, and standards, getmark.eu can help you generate it faster. It is a practical tool for sellers who want to get the paperwork right without paying someone just to fill out a template.