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Suspension riskPI-15 · Prohibited Items Policy

Items that pose a health or safety hazard, including unsafe toys, are prohibited

What this rule means

Etsy prohibits items that may pose a health or safety hazard, such as items that present a choking, electrocution, or strangulation hazard, even if they have not been recalled. Children's products also fall under safety laws, which differ by country. Etsy's page links to safety sources for the United States, Australia, the European Union, and Canada.

What Etsy says

Items that may pose a health or safety hazard are prohibited, even if they have not been the subject of a recall. This would include, for example, items that present a choking, electrocution, or strangulation hazard.
Read Etsy's full Prohibited Items Policy

Why Etsy has this rule

Young children put toys in their mouths, pull them apart, and sleep with them. A toy that breaks into small parts or contains an unsafe material can hurt a child. Safety standards and lab tests exist to catch these problems before a product reaches a family.

Etsy's page says items that may pose a health or safety hazard are prohibited, even without a recall. It lists children's products among items subject to complex legal regulations, and it links to the US Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act and to Australian, European, and Canadian product safety sources. The page names no exemption for handmade items or small shops.

Common mistakes

  • Selling handmade toys, rattles, or teethers without checking which safety rules apply in the places you sell.
  • Marketing a product to children without checking what paperwork the safety rules require.
  • Listing a toy with small parts for young children and no choking hazard warning.
  • Assuming a small shop or a handmade product is exempt from safety rules.
  • Leaving out any mention of safety standards in the listing for a children's item.
  • Using paint, glue, or fabric in a children's product without checking what is in it.
  • Selling vintage toys without checking whether they were recalled.

Examples

  • AllowedYou sell a children's toy after you check the safety rules for each country you sell to, and you keep the records.
  • AllowedYou sell a toy with small parts, and your listing states the choking hazard clearly.
  • AllowedYou sell a children's book.
  • Not allowedYou sell a handmade toy for children and never check which safety rules apply.
  • Not allowedYou sell a toy with small parts for toddlers and give no warning.
  • Not allowedYou list a children's product and say nothing about safety standards or testing.

How to stay compliant

  1. Delist any toy or children's product that does not meet the safety rules, including any required testing, for the places you sell.
  2. Check the safety rules for children's products in each market. Etsy links to the US Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, the European Commission, and Health Canada.
  3. Add a clear warning to listings for toys with small parts that a young child could reach.
  4. Keep your test reports and certificates with your records before you relist children's products.

Effort: high · 2-8 hours

If your suspension email cites this rule

Read the email and find the listing it names. Ask whether the product is meant for children. A listing can be treated as a children's product because of how you describe it, who it is marketed to, or how it looks. Then check what records you hold: test results, safety certificates, and any labels your country's rules require.

If you have no test records, remove the listing until you know what applies. Learn which tests and labels your country's safety rules require, starting with the sources Etsy links for the United States, Australia, the European Union, and Canada. If the product has small parts, add any choking hazard warning the rules call for. Keep your test reports and certificates where you can find them, and refer to them in your reply. Etsy makes the final decision, and no reply can promise a result.

Suspended over this rule?

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Common questions

Do handmade toys need lab testing?

Etsy's page does not state a testing rule. It lists children's products among items subject to complex legal regulations and links to safety laws. In the United States, that includes the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. Check the requirements for your product and country.

What safety paperwork might I need?

It depends on the product and country. Etsy's page does not list safety paperwork. It links to the US Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act and to Australian, European, and Canadian safety sources. Read the one that covers your buyers.

Do I need a choking hazard warning?

Etsy's page lists items that present a choking hazard as prohibited. Check the safety rules for any toy with small parts that a young child could reach.

I sell outside the United States. Does the rule apply?

Etsy's page links to safety sources for the United States, Australia, the European Union, and Canada. Rules differ by place, so check every place you sell to.

What if my product is not for children?

If you market a product to adults, say so in the listing and avoid wording or images that suggest it is a toy. The way you describe an item affects how it is treated.

Related prohibited items policy rules