EU draft would make marketplaces responsible for non-compliant third-country imports and add an import-surveillance fee
The Tilt · Friday, 11 September 2026
Why it matters
This would create formally different compliance and cost treatment based on import route—bulk shipments versus individual consumer parcels—and place new obligations on marketplaces handling products from outside the EU. It also proposes a direct Commission enforcement role alongside national surveillance, but the measure is not yet law and its fee calculation remains to be set in secondary legislation.
What happened
The European Commission is preparing the European Product Act, a draft expected on 6 October, that would require products sold through online marketplaces to carry a Digital Product Passport or manufacturer responsibility record and would require an EU-based importer or authorised representative for non-EU manufacturers. Marketplaces that fail to verify or remove non-compliant products could assume authorised-representative obligations, while importers would pay a new market-surveillance fee; bulk imports would face a lower fee than individual parcels sent directly to consumers. The draft would also allow the Commission to investigate and impose corrective measures, withdrawals, penalties or temporary restrictions when non-compliant products are likely present in at least two-thirds of member states and no national authority has opened an investigation. The proposal does not explicitly name China, but the Commission's stated concern is the growing flow of low-value products from Chinese platforms including Temu and Shein.
Previously
May 2026 — The European Commission fined Temu €200 million over shortcomings related to dangerous baby toys and faulty chargers.(European Commission via Euronews)
Players & places
- China
- European Commission
- European Union
- Temu
- Shein