Regulation (EU) 2023/988 · Article 16 · used goods
GPSR for vintage and second-hand goods
Sellers of vintage and pre-owned items are told two opposite things: that the General Product Safety Regulation does not reach used goods, and that it makes anyone handling a 1970s dress liable for its safety. Neither is true. This page sets out what Regulation (EU) 2023/988 actually asks of a seller established outside the European Union, what an Article 16 responsible person can honestly take on when no technical file has ever existed, and where the line between our duty and yours is drawn.
Does the GPSR apply to used goods at all?
It does. Regulation (EU) 2023/988 has applied since 13 December 2024 and it defines a product by what it is, not by how old it is or how many owners it has had. The recitals address second-hand goods directly: items repaired, reconditioned or sold on remain within scope when they are made available on the Union market in the course of a commercial activity. The regulation carves out only a narrow category, antiques and items that are clearly presented as needing repair or reconditioning before use, and even then the presentation has to be explicit at the point of sale.
This surprises people because the previous directive was applied loosely to the second-hand trade and marketplaces never asked. That has changed. Etsy, eBay, Vinted and Amazon now require the name and address of an EU-established economic operator before a listing aimed at EU buyers stays online, and the field does not distinguish between a handmade cushion and a 1960s coat. A seller established in the United Kingdom, Switzerland, the United States or anywhere else outside the Union needs someone inside it.
The technical file that was never written
Article 16 does two things. It makes the responsible person the contact point for market surveillance authorities, and it requires the technical documentation to be kept available for them. The first is straightforward. The second is where honesty matters more than convenience, because for a vintage item that documentation does not exist. Not because somebody lost it, and not because a previous owner was careless: it was never created. A dress made in 1972 predates the entire conformity framework that would have produced it.
A provider who promises to hold a technical file for your vintage stock is selling you something the regulation does not contain. What we do instead is keep the file that can exist, which for a used item means your description, your photographs and what you know about its origin. An authority asking about a specific listing gets a real answer from a real address in the Union, and gets it from us rather than from a mailbox that nobody reads. That is what Article 16 is for.
What the designation covers, and what stays with you
The designation covers the things that decide whether your listings stay online and whether an authority can reach you: our name and EU address on the product and on the listing, a contact point that answers, a certificate with a QR code and a public verification page, and one designation covering all twenty-seven member states rather than one per country.
What it does not do is make us the guarantor of the intrinsic safety of an item we did not manufacture. If a brooch has a pin that can open, or a coat was treated with a finish that is no longer permitted, responsibility for what you place on the market stays with you. It is written plainly in the contract rather than buried in it, and anyone telling you otherwise is describing a service that does not exist.
One designation for every category you sell
Vintage sellers rarely stay in one lane. A shop selling 1980s denim also lists costume jewellery, a scarf, a belt, a lamp, and sometimes something the owner made themselves from salvaged fabric. A single designation covers the shop, under its brand, with unlimited products. There is no charge per item, per SKU or per product family, and you can add categories during the year without telling us and without paying more.
| Category | Typical examples | Covered by one designation |
|---|---|---|
| Clothing and textiles | Dresses, denim, knitwear, coats, scarves, deadstock fabric | Yes |
| Costume and fine jewellery | Brooches, necklaces, earrings, watches, cufflinks | Yes |
| Leather goods and accessories | Belts, bags, gloves, hats, sunglasses | Yes |
| Homeware and decorative objects | Lamps, mirrors, ceramics, cushions, glassware | Yes |
| Handmade items you produce | Upcycled garments, embroidered linen, made-to-order pieces | Yes |
| Toys and childcare articles | Vintage dolls, wooden toys, prams | Yes, with extra care |
The last row carries a warning rather than an exclusion. Toys sit under their own directive as well as the GPSR, and safety expectations for items intended for children have moved a long way since most vintage toys were made. Small detachable parts, lead in paint and cords long enough to loop are the three things surveillance authorities look for first.
Marketplaces: Etsy, eBay, Vinted and Amazon
Every large marketplace serving EU consumers now has a compliance section asking for the responsible person. The wording differs but the requirement is the same: a name, a postal address inside the Union, an email address and usually a phone number. Some ask for it per listing, some at shop level, and some at both. Once the designation is issued you paste the same four lines everywhere, and the certificate code lets a buyer or an authority check that the appointment is real and still active.
What triggers a takedown is almost never the age of the item. It is an empty field, an address that turns out to be a virtual office with no one behind it, or a name that does not resolve to anything checkable. A listing pulled for a missing responsible person can usually be restored the same week; a shop suspended twice for the same reason is a harder conversation.
Two warnings on the product side, not the plan side
Neither of the following changes which plan you need. Both are things an authority could ask about, and it is better to hear them from us now than from them later.
| Rule | What it says | Why vintage sellers are exposed |
|---|---|---|
| Nickel restriction | REACH Annex XVII entry 27 limits nickel release from articles in prolonged contact with skin | It applies to vintage pieces and to pre-made components alike. Ask suppliers for a written declaration. |
| Fibre composition labelling | Regulation (EU) 1007/2011 requires the fibre composition to be given | It applies to used clothing sold commercially. Old labels are often gone or unreadable. |
| Lead and cadmium in metals | REACH Annex XVII entries 23 and 63 restrict cadmium and lead in jewellery | Costume jewellery made before the restrictions can exceed current limits. |
| Flammability of nightwear | National rules still apply to children’s nightwear in several member states | Vintage children’s clothing is the single riskiest category to list. |
Where you are established decides what applies
The duty follows the place of establishment, not nationality and not the language of the shop. Two separate obligations can arise at once, and a seller who is told about only one of them will find out about the other from a marketplace or an authority.
| You are established in | Article 27 GDPR | Article 16 GPSR |
|---|---|---|
| An EU member state | Not required | Not required as a non-EU trader |
| Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein | Not required, the GDPR applies through the EEA Agreement | Treated as inside the internal market |
| The United Kingdom | Required when you sell into the EU | Required when you place products on the EU market |
| Switzerland | Required, Switzerland is outside the EU and the EEA | Required, on the same basis |
| The United States or elsewhere | Required when you offer goods to people in the EU | Required when your products reach EU consumers |
The two duties are separate in law and separate in what they protect. Article 27 of the GDPR exists because you process the personal data of your buyers: names, addresses, order histories, messages. Article 16 of the GPSR exists because a physical object is reaching a consumer. One does not substitute for the other, and a shop selling vintage clothing from outside the Union usually needs both.
What we ask you for, and what happens next
The form asks for your legal name or your own name if you trade as an individual, your address, what you sell and where you sell it. For handmade items we ask for materials and suppliers of pre-made components; for vintage and second-hand we ask for the description, photographs and origin, and nothing more, because nothing more exists. A person reads the file rather than a script: if something in it does not add up, you hear from us before the designation is signed rather than after.
Once approved you receive a signed designation letter, a certificate with a QR code, a public verification page anyone can check, and the exact four lines to paste into the responsible person field of each marketplace. The appointment runs for twelve months and renews at a lower price than the first year.
Questions sellers actually ask
Does the GPSR really apply to second-hand clothing?
Yes. The regulation covers products made available on the Union market in the course of a commercial activity, and it does not distinguish between new and used. Selling pre-owned clothing through a shop or a marketplace is a commercial activity even when the volume is small.
I sell one or two items a month. Am I too small to be caught?
There is no turnover threshold and no minimum number of listings. What matters is whether the sales are commercial rather than a private individual clearing a wardrobe. A shop front, a business account on a marketplace or regular repeat sales all point to commercial activity.
Are antiques excluded?
The regulation excludes antiques, and items clearly presented as needing repair or reconditioning before use. The exclusion is narrower than sellers hope: a wearable 1970s coat listed as ready to wear is not an antique in this sense, whatever its age.
I have no technical file for a vintage dress. Can you still act for me?
Yes. For vintage and second-hand items we ask for the description, photographs and what you know about the origin. That is what can exist for such an item and it is what we keep available for an authority.
Are you responsible if a vintage item I sell turns out to be unsafe?
No. We are the contact point required by Article 16 and we hold what documentation there is. We do not guarantee the intrinsic safety of an item we did not manufacture, and responsibility for what you place on the market stays with you. This is stated plainly in the contract.
Do I need a separate designation for jewellery, clothing and homeware?
No. One designation covers your shop under its brand, with unlimited products across every category. There is no charge per item, per SKU or per product family.
Can I add new categories during the year?
Yes, at no extra cost. You do not need to tell us in advance or declare each new product.
Does one designation cover all EU countries?
Yes. All twenty-seven member states are covered by a single appointment. You do not need one responsible person per country.
What exactly do I put in the Etsy or eBay responsible person field?
The name of the appointed entity, the postal address in the Union, the email address and the phone number. We send you the four lines formatted for pasting once the designation is issued.
My listing was taken down for a missing responsible person. How fast can it come back?
The designation is issued within twenty-four hours of the file being checked, and marketplaces usually restore a listing once the field is filled and the details resolve to a real entity.
I am in the United Kingdom. Do I need this?
Yes, if your products reach consumers in the European Union. The United Kingdom is outside the Union, so an EU-established responsible person is required, and a separate UK regime applies to goods placed on the British market.
I am in Switzerland. Does the same answer apply?
Yes. Switzerland is outside both the EU and the EEA, so a Swiss seller reaching EU consumers is in exactly the same position as a British or American one.
I am in Norway. Do I need an EU representative as well?
Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein are in the EEA, so the GDPR applies directly and no Article 27 representative is needed. Product obligations should be checked against your own national authority before you assume either way.
Do I need the GDPR representative too, or just the GPSR one?
They are separate duties. If you are outside the EU and you process the personal data of EU buyers, Article 27 of the GDPR applies as well. Most vintage shops selling into the Union need both, and one plan can cover them together.
What about the nickel and fibre labelling rules you mention?
They sit on the product rather than on the designation, and neither changes which plan you need. They matter because a surveillance authority can ask about them, and because a written declaration from a component supplier is easy to obtain before you need it and impossible to obtain afterwards.
Can I stop the service at the end of the year?
Yes. The appointment runs for twelve months and you can decide not to renew before the renewal date. If you do renew, the second year costs less than the first.
Appoint a responsible person for your shop
One designation, unlimited products, all twenty-seven member states. A person checks your file and the certificate follows within twenty-four hours.
See the GPSR plans Free privacy policy check Ask before you buy