Export document
EU general product safety
The general product safety regulation applies to consumer products that no sector rule covers, which in Indonesian sourcing means furniture, homeware, décor and craft. It requires an economic operator established in the European Union to be responsible for the product, plus traceability and technical documentation.
The essentials.
- Somebody in the EU has to be responsible
- A product may not be placed on the market unless there is an economic operator established in the Union responsible for it. For an importer buying direct from Indonesia, that is you.1
- Traceability on the product
- The product or its packaging carries identifying information, and the responsible operator's details have to reach the consumer.1
- Technical documentation
- A risk analysis and evidence that the product is safe, held and produced on request. It is written before the goods are sold rather than after a complaint.1
- Online selling is explicitly covered
- Distance and online sales are inside the scope, and marketplaces carry their own obligations, which is why platforms began demanding this information from sellers.1
What it does not cover.
It is not CE marking
Products covered by a sector directive follow that directive and its marking. This regulation fills the space where no sector rule applies, which is most decorative and household goods from Indonesia.
The Indonesian producer cannot be the responsible person
The operator has to be established in the European Union. A producer in Java cannot fill the role, and an importer who assumed the supplier handles it has no compliant product.
It does not replace timber or food rules
A wooden chair still needs its legality documents and, from December 2026, deforestation due diligence. Product safety sits alongside them rather than instead of them.
Questions buyers ask.
Who is the responsible person if I import direct?
You are, as the importer established in the Union. If you are outside the EU and selling into it, you need somebody established there to take the role. This is the part that catches sellers who had been shipping direct to consumers without an EU presence.
What does the technical documentation contain?
A description of the product, a risk analysis and the evidence you relied on to conclude it is safe. For a piece of Indonesian furniture that usually means construction details, materials, any test reports and your own assessment. It does not have to be elaborate and it does have to exist.
Does it apply to goods I sell only online?
Yes, and distance selling is explicitly in scope. Marketplaces have their own obligations too, which is why several began asking sellers for responsible person details and refusing listings without them.
Where this comes up.
Indonesian rattan furniture
Indonesia restricts export of raw rattan, so what leaves the country is finished furniture. What that means for a buyer, and how to specify a piece.
Indonesian wooden homeware
Boards and bowls are wood products and food contact articles at the same time. Two sets of rules apply, and most buyers only check one.
Indonesian ceramics
Tableware and decorative ceramics from Bali and Java. The glaze is where the compliance question lives, and batch variation is normal.
Indonesian water hyacinth furniture
An invasive weed from Javanese lakes, woven into furniture. What it suits, what it does not, and why moisture decides whether a container arrives sound.
Indonesian seagrass
Woven from dried grass into baskets, storage and furniture. What it suits, what it does not, and why moisture decides whether a container arrives sound.
Export documents, by category
Four categories, four different sets of paperwork and almost no overlap. Built from the reference pages, so it cannot fall behind what is published.
Worth reading.
Sources
- 1Regulation (EU) 2023/988 on general product safety. EUR-Lex. Checked 5 August 2026.
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