Does the GPSR apply to B2B products?

GPSR and B2B: what the regulation means by product

The GPSR does not distinguish between B2B and B2C. It regulates products, and Article 3(1) GPSR (opens in a new tab) defines a product as any item that is intended for consumers or is likely, under reasonably foreseeable conditions, to be used by consumers even if not intended for them. A consumer is a natural person acting outside their trade, business, craft or profession (Article 3(17)).

Recital 9 spells out the second route: products designed exclusively for professional use that have migrated to the consumer market fall under the GPSR, because they could harm the consumers who use them. The Commission's GPSR guidelines (C/2025/6233, point 2.1) name typical renovation and construction products sold in DIY stores to ordinary consumers.

Products supplied in the context of a service are covered too (Article 3(1)). The guidelines (point 2.3) count products that consumers operate themselves on a provider's premises, such as fitness machines in gyms, and products applied to them, such as tattoo inks. A machine you sell to a gym is a B2B sale, but the people using it are consumers.

When professional products become consumer products

Neither the GPSR nor its guidelines define reasonably foreseeable. The Blue Guide, the Commission's guide to CE legislation, describes it as use that could result from lawful and readily predictable human behaviour (section 2.8). It adds that a tool designed for professionals only may also be used by non-professionals, and that design and instructions must take this into account.

It also draws a limit: professional machine tools meant for trained workers under their employer's supervision do not engage the manufacturer's responsibility if a distributor or service provider rents them out to untrained consumers (section 2.8). Readily predictable use counts, not every conceivable one.

The following questions are not an official test, but each follows from Article 3(1) and the DIY example:

• Sales channels: Can consumers buy the product from you or your distributors, for example in DIY stores, general online shops or on marketplaces open to consumers?
• Presentation: Is it packed, pictured and described like a retail product?
• Price and quantity: Is it sold as single units at prices private buyers pay, or only in bulk, on quotation and on account?
• Use: Can people without training, special tools or professional installation use it?

Record your answers and the evidence, such as distribution contracts that restrict resale to business customers. If consumers can buy the product in the normal course of your distribution, treat it as covered.

Products outside the GPSR in any case

Some products are excluded whoever buys them (Article 2(2) GPSR): medicinal products, food, feed, living plants and animals, animal by-products, plant protection products, transport equipment operated by a service provider, certain aircraft and antiques. Used, repaired and reconditioned products are covered, unless they are clearly marked as needing repair before use (Article 2(3)).

CE-marked products: the GPSR as a safety net

Many B2B products fall under CE legislation, the EU's sector rules for machinery, electrical and radio equipment and other product groups. The GPSR then steps back (Article 2(1)): its safety requirements cover only risks the sector rules leave open, and the duties in Chapter III, Section 1 (Articles 9 to 18), including those of manufacturers and of the Responsible Person, do not apply.

The guidelines still call the GPSR a safety net for all products on the EU market (point 2.2). If a CE-marked product is a consumer product, the GPSR adds:

• the information required in online offers (Article 19) and accident notifications through the Safety Business Gateway (Article 20);
• the rules for online marketplaces (Chapter IV) and the Safety Gate alert system (Chapter VI);
• direct notice to consumers, recall notices and remedies in a recall (Articles 35 to 37);
• safety requirements for risks the sector rules do not cover; the guidelines cite self-learning features of low voltage devices.

Pure B2B products still have rules

If consumers are unlikely to use your product, the GPSR does not apply. That rarely means no rules: CE legislation covers products for professional end users as well as consumers (Blue Guide, section 3.8).

For products under the acts listed in Article 4(5) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 (opens in a new tab), among them the machinery, low voltage, EMC, RoHS and radio equipment rules, an economic operator established in the EU must be responsible for the product, whoever the customer is (Article 4(1)). Its name and postal address go on the product, its packaging, the parcel or an accompanying document (Article 4(4)).

Sector rules can use a similar test. From 20 January 2027, the Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 requires essential safety information on paper for machinery intended for non-professional users or that they can use under reasonably foreseeable conditions (Article 10(7)). Our Machinery Regulation checklist covers the switch.

Where neither the GPSR nor CE legislation applies, national law can. In Germany, the Product Safety Act covers such ready-to-use products (§ 1(3) ProdSG): they must not endanger health and safety in intended or foreseeable use (§ 3(2)), and they need instructions in German where safe use depends on following certain rules (§ 3(4)).

What to do if your product is a consumer product

1. 1.Record the assessment for each product line and review it when you add a distributor, a shop or a marketplace.
2. 2.Carry out the risk analysis, including foreseeable use by non-professionals, and keep the technical documentation for 10 years (Article 9(2) and (3) GPSR); see our guide to the GPSR risk assessment.
3. 3.Label the product with a type, batch or serial number and your name, postal and electronic address (Article 9(5) and (6)).
4. 4.Make sure there is a Responsible Person in the EU (importer, Authorized Representative or, as a fallback, fulfilment service provider) and that its name, postal and electronic address appear on the product, packaging, parcel or an accompanying document (Article 16); see who can take the role and where each address must appear.
5. 5.Provide instructions and safety information in the language each member state sets (Article 9(7)); Germany requires German (§ 6 ProdSG).
6. 6.Complete your online offers with manufacturer, Responsible Person, product identification with a picture, and warnings (Article 19).
7. 7.Prepare accident notifications through the Safety Business Gateway (Article 20).

For CE-marked consumer products, steps 2 to 5 follow the sector rules and Article 4 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020; steps 6 and 7 apply as listed.

Practical example: a Taiwanese maker of workshop equipment

A Taiwanese manufacturer sells three product lines in the EU through distributors.

One Authorized Representative can take on both roles for all three lines if the written mandate covers them. The manufacturer files why the milling machine is professional-only and checks that reasoning whenever a new distributor joins.

Common mistakes with GPSR and B2B

• Relying on a “professional use only” label. Article 3(1) covers products consumers are likely to use even if not intended for them.
• Looking only at your own invoices. Your distributors' customers count too, as the DIY example shows.
• Treating CE marking as a GPSR exemption. Consumer CE products still need complete online offers and accident notifications (Articles 19 and 20).
• Assuming B2B means no EU contact. Article 4 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 applies to many CE products whoever buys them.
• Overlooking products used in services. Fitness machines in gyms or rented bikes can be covered (guidelines, point 2.3).

Conclusion: decide per product line and write it down

Whether the GPSR applies to your B2B products depends on where they can end up, not on whom you invoice. Decide per product line, record why, and check again when your sales channels change.

Representa helps you draw that line. Our CE marking support identifies the applicable directives and harmonized standards, and our compliance consulting reviews your documentation and prioritizes fixes. As your GPSR Responsible Person or EU Authorized Representative, we act within the agreed scope and mandate; you remain the manufacturer.

Frequently asked questions