The safety standards for toys in the UK are continuously being upgraded, and the compliance threshold is increasing.

 

On September 23, 2026, the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology of the UK (DBIST) issued Announcement No. 0143/26, proposing to update the list of designated standards under the "2011 Toys (Safety) Regulations" (UK TSR, S.I. 2011 No. 1881). Three new EN71 series toy standards are to be added, and the proposed effective date is October 22, 2026. This means that toys exported to the UK will face a new set of compliance requirements.

 

01 Quick Overview of the New Regulations: Adding 3 EN71 Standards

 

According to Announcement No. 0143/26 issued by DBIST of the UK, this time, the following 3 EN71 series standards are proposed to be added to the UK TSR designated standard list:

 

EN 71-4: 2020 + A1: 2025 — Chemical and related activity experiment kits

 

EN 71-15: 2025 — Formaldehyde content in foam toy materials

 

EN 71-16: 2025 — Specific chlorine phosphorus-based flame retardants (TCEP, TCPP, TDCP) in toy materials

 

The proposed effective date is October 22, 2026. That is to say, starting from next month, these three new standards will officially become the designated standards under the UK toy safety regulations.

 

It is particularly important to note the transitional period arrangement: The old version EN 71-4: 2020 can still be used as a designated standard until March 14, 2028, and enterprises have approximately 1.5 years of buffer period to complete the version switch.

 

02 Comprehensive Update of the UK Toy Designated Standard List

In addition to adding 3 standards, this announcement also simultaneously updated the entire UK toy EN71 designated standard list, covering all dimensions of requirements from physical mechanical properties to chemical harmful substances.

 

Currently, the UK toy designated standard system mainly includes:

 

EN 71-1: Mechanical and physical properties (latest version EN 71-1: 2026)

 

EN 71-2: Flammability (latest version EN 71-2: 2020 + A1: 2025)

 

EN 71-3: Specific element migration

 

EN 71-5: Chemical toy kits (excluding experiment kits)

 

EN 71-7: Finger painting paints

 

EN 71-8: Household activity toys

 

EN 71-12: N-nitrosamines and nitrosatable substances

 

EN 71-13: Smell board games, cosmetic kits, taste games

 

EN 71-14: Household trampolines

 

EN IEC 62115: Electric toys (new version is being drafted)

 

EN 71-17 ~ EN 71-20: Newly controlled isothiazolinone, phenol, bisphenol A, microbial safety, etc. chemical items

 

From the list, it can be seen that the UK's control over toy safety is continuously extending from traditional physical, combustion, heavy metal, etc. basic items to more detailed chemical harmful substances fields.

 

03 Three Easily-Omitted Compliance Details

 

This update is not just "adding a few standards", and if some details are not noticed, it is likely to cause problems in actual shipments.

 

1. EN 71-1 Wave Roller Riding Toys: Some clauses do not have compliance presumption effect

 

Many enterprises think that as long as they meet the EN 71-1 standard, they have met the basic safety requirements of UK TSR. But this announcement clearly states an exception: In EN 71-1: 2014 + A1: 2018, for some clauses of wave roller riding toys, the compliance presumption effect does not exist.

 

That is to say, enterprises that produce such products cannot merely claim that their products meet the basic requirements of the UK toy safety regulations based on this standard. Additional assessment of relevant risks is needed to ensure that the products truly comply with the regulations.

 

Second, for nitrosamine in EN 71-12: The standard limit is much stricter than the regulation.

 

For elastic toys for children under 36 months that may be ingested, the nitrosamine limit specified in EN 71-12 is much stricter than the limit in the regulation:

 

N- nitrosamine: Standard limit 0.01 mg/kg, Regulation limit 0.05 mg/kg

 

Ammonium nitroso compounds: Standard limit 0.1 mg/kg, Regulation limit 1 mg/kg

 

When testing with this standard, the stricter standard limit needs to be met, rather than the regulation limit. This point must be clearly confirmed with the laboratory before submitting samples for testing to avoid the situation of preparing according to the regulation limit but being judged as non-compliant according to the standard limit.

 

Third, for button/coin battery toys: It is recommended to implement additional strengthening requirements.

 

The UK recommends that enterprises for electric toys containing button batteries or coin batteries (EN IEC 62115) implement battery safety warning requirements, including:

 

Warning signs must be on the packaging and the product itself

 

Indicate symptoms of accidental ingestion and medical advice

 

Independent sold button batteries must use child-proof opening packaging

 

The battery body must be marked with a durable warning

 

Although these are "voluntary strengthening requirements", from the perspective of market supervision and consumer protection, implementing them in advance can reduce the risk of subsequent recalls or complaints.

 

04 Enterprise Action Guide: Three Steps to Complete Compliance Self-Inspection

 

In response to the regulatory updates, it is recommended that toy enterprises exporting to the UK, importers, upstream raw material suppliers, and distributors take the following three aspects as the basis for early planning:

 

The first step: Sort out product categories and check the applicability of the new standards.

 

Compare the three newly added standards and conduct a thorough check on your own products to determine if they belong to chemical experiment sets, foam toys, toys containing specific flame retardants, etc., and confirm if they are within the scope of the new regulations.

 

The second step: Send samples for testing in advance to assess compliance risks.

 

For products applicable to the new standards, it is recommended to arrange for sample testing as early as possible to assess the compliance of harmful substances, physical and mechanical properties, etc. Especially for the two new standards EN 71-15 and EN 71-16, there is relatively less domestic testing experience, and early testing can leave time for rectification.

 

The third step: Update the supply chain synchronously to avoid shipment disruptions.

 

Sync the new compliance requirements with upstream raw material suppliers and production factories, especially the supply chain involving foam materials, chemical sets, and the use of flame retardants, to ensure that the raw material end meets the requirements of the new standards.

 

From the announcement to the official implementation, there is less than one month. However, from sample testing to obtaining the report and completing the rectification, it often takes a longer period. Taking action in advance can avoid the passive situation of scrambling at the last minute and shipment disruptions after the new regulations are implemented.