EU Toy Safety Regulation: Updates on Labeling

On Dec. 12, 2025, the new European Regulation on tToy Safety, which will replace Directive 2009/48/EC, was definitively published in the Official Journal.

Among the most impactful requirements are updates on labeling aimed to emphasize warnings in terms of visibility, legibility, positioning and dimensions, to simplify translations in each of the EU member states’ languages, and to provide traceability and safety information to the consumer to guarantee transparency.

1. Warnings – general rules

New requirements for the dimensions and legibility of warnings have been defined.

In particular, warnings shall have an x-height equal to or greater than 1.2 mm and shall be printed with a sufficient contrast between the lettering and the background to ensure visibility.

All pictograms used shall have a minimum dimension of 10 mm.

Only one exemption is allowed for all the packaging or containers with the largest surface of less than 80 cm2: In these cases, the minimum x-height of the font size allowed is 0.9 mm.

2. Word “warning”

The text of the new regulation introduces a new safety pictogram that can be used in place of the word “warning,” thereby eliminating the need to translate this indication into all 23 official languages of the European Union.

The pictogram size shall be at least 10 mm in the form of a black triangle with a yellow background and with a black exclamation mark:

3. Digital product passport

The Digital Product Passport will replace the EU Declaration of Conformity and will include key safety-related information about the toy. All stakeholders involved in the commercialization chain — including market surveillance authorities, economic operators and consumers — must have immediate access to this information, with content varying according to their respective access rights. For example, consumers will be able to view a limited subset of information, whereas market surveillance authorities will have access to more detailed data.

Access to the information of the digital product passport is granted by the presence of a new element: the data carrier. The data carrier shall be physically present on the toy or on an affixed label, but it can be moved to the packaging or in the documentation accompanying the toy if affixing it to the toy itself is not possible due to space constraints.

4. Manufacturers and importers’ communication channels

Manufacturers will be required to provide publicly accessible channels through which consumers can submit complaints and safety-related issues. This can be achieved through specific pages on the manufacturer’s website that give direct access to the contact information or through a telephone number.

Moreover, manufacturers shall ensure that the toy displays, among other information already requested by the actual Toy Safety Directive, their electronic address. The same shall be made by the importers (if any).

NOTE: International and local regulations are subject to change, and each customer’s situation may vary. This information is intended as a general overview and should not be relied upon as specific advice.