7 New EU Product Compliance Requirements You Can’t Ignore In 2023

The next few years are going to throw a lot of challenges at importers who sell in Europe as there are quite a few new EU product compliance requirements coming into action either now (2023) or in the next few years.

To help you prepare, I decided to make a video talking you through 7 of the key EU product compliance requirements that are most likely to affect anyone manufacturing products.

As you can see, this was created under the banner of our product safety, reliability, and compliance lab, RSQ-Labs, as it’s the lab that often helps clients overcome compliance challenges like these.

EU product compliance requirements included

We cover 7 key requirements that you should know about:

1. General Product Safety Regulation (2023/988) – applicable
   from 2024
2. Ecodesign for Sustainable Product Regulation – applicable
   probably from 2025
3. Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive – applicable
   gradually over time
4. Packaging & Packaging Waste Directive – applicable soon
5. Battery & Waste Batteries Regulation – applicable from 2025
6. Deforestation Regulation (2023/1115) – applicable from 2025
7. New Directive on Liability for Defective Products – applicable
   from 2024

What you should do next if you import products into the EU…

We have a couple of pieces of advice for you if you sell into the EU (and that includes companies from, say, the USA, who will still be bound by these requirements).

1. Watch the video above ☝️
2. Download the presentation as it contains links to all of the EU’s literature for the above 7 requirements so you can do your own research. Here’s a download link 👇

Further reading/listening about EU regulations and requirements that may affect you

EU product liability directive

You can learn more about the EU product liability directive by listening to this podcast: Getting Ahead Of The Upcoming EU Product Liability Directive

You may also like: Exploring Product Safety & Reliability Issue Liability [Podcast]

Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation

We’ve covered this regulation quite thoroughly as it’s a lot to grapple with for importers:

• What is the EU Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation? [FREE long guide]
• EU ESPR is coming soon in May ‘23: Act now to be more sustainable [Podcast]
• The EU Ecodesign Regulation Is Coming, But Are You Prepared? [Podcast part1]
• How To Comply With The EU Ecodesign Regulation? [Podcast part 2]
• 39 Strategies For Designing Products With A Lower Environmental Impact

Sofeast is already helping clients with their EU Ecodesign Regulation Risk Assessment & Preparation as it involves getting complex supply chain information and making your product designs more sustainable…we can help you, too, so feel free to get a quotation.

Supply chain transparency and product lifecycle analysis

As will become apparent, you may need to obtain a lot more transparency in your supply chain than you currently have.

• Do you have enough visibility over your supply chain to satisfy new EU sustainability regulations?

You will also benefit from doing a lifecycle assessment which is the most common methodology for assessing the potential environmental impacts associated with the entire life cycle of a product. We’ve also covered this:

• Lifecycle Assessment (LCA) and Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) Requirements: What Manufacturers need to know
• How To Do an LCA? [Guide]

Sofeast can also do your LCA for you: LifeCycle Assessment and Environmental Product Declaration Support (Measuring Product Environmental Impacts)

Additional EU requirement-related topics

• Right To Repair: Blessing or Curse for Manufacturers?
• Minimizing a Product’s ‘Cradle to Grave’ Environmental Impact
• How ISO 37301 Might Improve Chinese Suppliers’ Compliance
• Responsible & Sustainable Purchasing Practices in Focus
• The Dangers of Cheap Li-ion Batteries and the Future of Compliance
• EU Product Compliance Overview & Tips for Buyers (Feat. Fredrik Grönkvist)