On July 16, 2021, the European Union (EU) Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 will come into force. The aim is to improve market surveillance and compliance with product regulations. It applies to all products subject to EU harmonized Regulations indicated in Annex I. A Union Product Compliance Network (UPCN) will be set up by January 1, 2021.

For online sales, the regulation outlines the following requirements:

• Sales online are subject to surveillance when an economic operator directs its activities to a Member State market by any means
• Non-EU vendors are required to have a representative in the EU
• The fulfillment service provider becomes responsible when there is no representative in the EU (a fulfillment service provider is a person or company offering at least two of the following services: warehousing, packaging, addressing and dispatching, without having ownership of the products involved; courier and postal companies are specifically excluded).

For economic operators in the EU, the regulation states:

• An economic operator (a manufacturer, an importer, an authorized representative or a fulfillment service provider) must be established in the EU in order to:
• Ensure the availability of the conformity documentation
• Cooperate with market surveillance authorities
• Inform authorities when they have reasons to believe that a product presents a risk

In terms of Market surveillance, the regulation stipulates:

• Market surveillance national authorities are granted strengthened powers
• The tasks of market surveillance are defined and powers, like taking samples and imposing penalties, are harmonized
• Market surveillance authorities may reclaim all cost of their activities in case of non-compliant products
• A harmonized approach for surveillance at EU borders by customs and surveillance authorities
• A UPCN to be set up by January 1, 2021

Read the full text of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020.

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Sanda Stefanovic

SGS Toy Expert

Email: crs.media@sgs.com