Etsy GPSR Product Safety Info for Candle Sellers: What to Put in Each Field

Published 2026-10-26 · All articles

If you sell candles, wax melts or reed diffusers on Etsy and ship to the EU, you have seen Etsy's "Manufacturers" and "Product safety info" fields. This guide explains what goes in them for candle shops, based on the regulation text and Etsy's help pages. It is orientation, not legal advice.

Why Etsy added these fields

The EU General Product Safety Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2023/988 ("GPSR"), has applied since 13 December 2024. Article 19 says that when a product is offered online to consumers in the EU, the offer must show at least:

• (a) the manufacturer's name and postal and electronic address;
• (b) if the manufacturer is not established in the EU, the name and postal and electronic address of the person responsible in the EU;
• (c) information that identifies the product, including a picture, its type and any other product identifier;
• (d) any warning or safety information that has to be on the product or its packaging, in a language consumers can easily understand, as decided by the Member State where it is sold.

Article 22(9) requires marketplaces to let sellers provide this per product and display it. That is why the fields appeared on Etsy.

The two ways Etsy lets you add the information

According to Etsy's Seller Handbook and Help Center, there are two routes, and you only need to fill one of them:

1. Shop level (Option 1). In Shop Manager go to Settings → Partners you work with and add an economic operator (manufacturer and/or EU Responsible Person). Best when every product has the same maker and Responsible Person.
2. Listing level (Option 2). In each listing, use the Manufacturers and Product safety info text box. Best if you resell several brands.

Safety warnings are still written per product type.

Field by field, for a candle shop

Manufacturer

Under GPSR Art. 9(6), the manufacturer is identified by name (or registered trade name or trade mark), a postal address and an electronic address. For most handmade candle shops, the manufacturer is you, or your business. Use a deliverable postal address and an email someone reads; Art. 9(11) also expects a public channel for complaints.

EU Responsible Person

If you make your candles in the US, UK, Canada, Australia or anywhere else outside the EU, Art. 16(1) says the product cannot be placed on the EU market unless an economic operator established in the EU is responsible for it. Their name, postal address and electronic address go on the listing (Art. 19(b)) and on the product, its packaging, the parcel or an accompanying document (Art. 16(3)). We explain the options in a separate article, Do US candle sellers need an EU Responsible Person?

Product identification

Art. 19(c) asks for a picture, the product type and any identifier. A practical candle line looks like:

Product: Soy wax container candle, net 200 g, batch B2611, SKU LAV-200.

Art. 9(5) also requires a type, batch or serial number on the product or packaging, so a label close-up photo helps.

Product safety info

The text should match your printed label. Common candle-labelling practice in Europe follows the themes of the standard BS EN 15494 for candle safety labels, which the British Candlemakers Federation and UK trading-standards packs summarise. Typical core lines for a container candle:

Never leave a burning candle unattended. Keep away from children and pets. Keep away from things that can catch fire. Use on a heat-resistant, stable surface. Do not move while burning or while the wax is liquid. Burn only in the original container and stop use when about 1 cm of wax remains.

Wax melts need different wording (hot wax, suitable warmer only, "not food, not a toy"); reed diffusers need ingestion, eye/skin and furniture-damage lines. Numbers such as wick trim and burn time should come from your own burn tests.

Do not forget CLP

Scented candles, melts and especially reed diffuser liquids may also fall under the EU CLP Regulation (EC) 1272/2008 because of the fragrance mixture. GPSR Art. 2(1) says GPSR covers risks only where no more specific EU rule applies, so CLP wording (pictograms, signal word, hazard and precautionary statements, allergen lines such as EUH208) comes from your fragrance supplier's Safety Data Sheet. A template cannot calculate that for you.

Which language?

Art. 9(7) and Art. 19(d) refer to a language easily understood by consumers, as determined by the Member State. Etsy shows one description to everyone, so many sellers add English plus the language of their main EU markets, checked by a native speaker.

A short checklist

• ☐ Choose shop-level or listing-level route, not both with conflicting data
• ☐ Manufacturer name, full postal address, monitored email
• ☐ EU Responsible Person details if you are outside the EU
• ☐ Product type, net content, batch and SKU
• ☐ Warnings that match the physical label
• ☐ CLP lines from your SDS where applicable
• ☐ Translations reviewed for your main EU markets

Tools that can save you typing

We built CandleGPSR, a free browser-based tool that assembles these blocks (manufacturer, Responsible Person, identification, warnings) for six candle and home-fragrance product types: gpsr.ludegong.com. Nothing you type leaves your browser.

If you prefer files you can keep, the CandleGPSR Template Pack ($12) has the wording for container, pillar, tealight, votive/jar candles, wax melts and non-powered reed diffusers in English with machine-drafted German, French, Italian and Spanish, plus Etsy and Amazon field checklists: Gumroad or Payhip.

Disclaimer: This article is general information, not legal advice. CandleGPSR is not an EU Responsible Person and does not provide one. Using these templates does not guarantee compliance or marketplace approval. German, French, Italian and Spanish texts are machine-drafted and need native-speaker review. Check the current Etsy Help Center and the Regulation itself, and consult a qualified adviser for your situation. Not affiliated with Etsy or the European Commission.

Sources: Regulation (EU) 2023/988, Art. 2, 9, 16, 19, 22 (OJ L 135, 23.5.2023); Etsy Help Center, "What is the General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR)?" (https://help.etsy.com/hc/en-us/articles/28211364687383); Etsy Seller Handbook GPSR article (https://www.etsy.com/seller-handbook/article/1093438529659); British Candlemakers Federation advice pack.