CE Marking and GPSR Compliance for Imports from China

Anyone importing products from China into the EU is legally treated as the manufacturer. This means you bear full liability for the safety and compliance of your goods. Since December 2024, the new EU General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) has significantly tightened these obligations.

This guide provides a practical overview of the requirements for China importers, how the CE marking process works, what the GPSR specifically demands from you, and which critical mistakes to avoid – based on our experience from hundreds of import projects between China and Europe.

1. Your Legal Status as an Importer

As an importer of goods from third countries into the EU, you are classified as a responsible economic operator under product safety laws and the GPSR. This carries concrete consequences:

• You assume full product liability for all imported goods.
• Customs authorities inspect compliance with product safety regulations upon entry.
• In the event of violations, import clearance can be denied.
• Market surveillance authorities can issue sales bans, mandatory recalls, and severe fines.

Important: Responsibility always rests with the EU-based company – regardless of whether the manufacturer is located in China, and completely independent of delivery terms like DDP or FOB.

2. CE Marking: A Mandatory Requirement for EU Market Access

The CE mark is a legally binding declaration that your product complies with all applicable EU directives. Without CE marking, many product categories cannot legally be sold or put into service within the EU.

The CE Marking Process in Practice:

3. Warning: Counterfeit CE Markings from China

A frequent issue with Chinese imports: many manufacturers apply a logo that looks deceptively similar to the official CE mark, but simply stands for "China Export".

4. The General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR)

The GPSR (Regulation (EU) 2025/988) is strictly active and covers all consumer products. Even goods not subject to CE marking (textiles, furniture, decorations) must strictly fulfill these baseline safety requirements.

5. Risk Assessment: The Most Underestimated Mandatory Document

The GPSR mandates a systematic risk assessment for every single product. A risk assessment is neither a laboratory test report nor a factory certificate; it is an independent, structured evaluation of all foreseeable hazards across the entire product lifecycle (materials, intended use, foreseeable misuse by children). Generic templates are systematically rejected by European surveillance authorities.

6. REACH, RoHS, and Other Chemical Frameworks

In addition to CE and GPSR, chemical threshold limits must be strictly monitored and enforced:

7. Where to Test? Inspection Strategies for Asian Imports

For absolute peace of mind, we recommend a combined compliance strategy: conduct targeted pre-shipment laboratory audits directly in China using locally available accredited bodies (SGS, Bureau Veritas, TÜV Rheinland) before your cargo leaves Asia. Upon port entry into Europe, random sample confirmations secure seamless alignment with local market standards. Lab costs fluctuate between 150 EUR (RoHS) and 5,000 EUR based on electronic complexity.

8. How Kaiserberg Secures Your Product Compliance Portfolio

As a German firm headquartered in Schwäbisch Gmünd with our own operative field offices on-site in China, we insulate your import supply chains from regulatory vulnerabilities:

• Supplier Audits & Factory Inspections: Comprehensive baseline reviews of the facility's engineering capabilities.
• On-Site Quality Protocols: Mandatory structural checks (DUPRO & PSI) directly at the production lines.
• Certificate & File Verification: Legally robust screening of all lab records, raw data, and test compliance frameworks.
• Customs & Import Management: Faultless coordination of all declarations and classification data for custom clearance.