European Union: Regulation (EU 2025/2509) on safety of toys and repealing Directive 2009/48/EC enters into force

On 1 August 2030, the Regulation on the safety of toys and repealing Directive 2009/48/EC enters into force. The Regulation applies to manufacturers, importers and distributors of toys placed on the market in the European Union. It establishes general and specific safety requirements that cover hazards relating to the physical, mechanical, chemical, electrical and flammability properties of toys, as well as hygiene and radioactivity. Manufacturers are required to ensure design compliance, conduct safety assessments, prepare technical documentation and create a digital product passport. Importers must verify compliance before placing toys on the market, while distributors must exercise due care when handling compliant products. It establishes a mandatory digital product passport system, accessible via data carriers, which replaces the European Union declaration of conformity and enables automatic customs verification by interconnecting with the European Union Customs Single Window Certificates Exchange System. It further provides for conformity assessment procedures, including third-party European Union-type examination where harmonised standards are absent or not fully applied. It also establishes market surveillance procedures and safeguard mechanisms for non-compliant toys.