Phone cases, screen protectors and accessories

• Regulation (EU) 2023/988 — GPSR
• Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 — REACH
• Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 — for accessories with electronics

Who has to appoint one

Sellers outside the Union placing phone accessories on the EU market, including print-on-demand and dropshipping operations. This is one of the highest-volume categories on marketplaces and one of the most frequently suppressed, because sellers assume small accessories are unregulated.

Thresholds and exemptions

None. Passive accessories fall under GPSR; anything with a battery, a magnet assembly with electronics or a wireless function moves into the electrical and radio regimes as well.

What must appear on the label

Manufacturer name and address, EU responsible person name and address with an electronic contact, product identifier and batch number, and warnings where relevant — for example small parts warnings for accessories with detachable elements, and magnet warnings where high-strength magnets are used.

Marketplace fields

Amazon, eBay and Etsy suppress accessory listings with an empty responsible person field, and this category was among the first affected when the GPSR fields went live in December 2024.

Documentation you must hold

Technical documentation with the risk analysis, REACH compliance evidence for plasticisers and heavy metals in the case material, and traceability records. For accessories containing electronics, the declaration of conformity and the relevant test reports.

Standards and testing

REACH Annex XVII screening for phthalates in soft plastics, cadmium and lead in decorative coatings, and nickel release in metal parts touching skin. Tempered glass protectors are tested for edge sharpness and fragmentation behaviour. Small parts testing where an accessory is child-attractive.

Language requirements

Warnings and instructions in the language of each member state of sale, in the listing as well as on the packaging.

When it applies

Before the listing goes live, since Article 19 GPSR applies to the offer itself.

How long records are kept

Ten years from placing on the market, with traceability records for the same period.

What happens if you do not comply

Listing suppression is immediate and automatic. Beyond that, national fines and withdrawal orders, and Safety Gate alerts where high-strength magnets or phthalates are found.

Who enforces it

National market surveillance authorities, customs at import, and the marketplaces as first-line enforcers.

Where the boundary lies

A case with an integrated battery is an electrical product and a battery producer obligation in every country you ship to. Cases with strong loose magnets have caused recalls after ingestion incidents. Novelty accessories shaped like food or toys can be reclassified as toys, or fall foul of the food-imitating products rules.

Questions we are asked

We only sell phone cases — is this really required?

Yes. GPSR applies to every consumer product without a sectoral regime, and accessories were among the first categories marketplaces enforced.

Does a print-on-demand supplier handle it?

Only if it accepts the responsible person role in writing. If you sell under your brand, you are the manufacturer in law.