What Shopify does and does not do for GPSR compliance
Commerce infrastructure and display
Shopify provides the commerce infrastructure. The platform allows merchants to display compliance-related information on product pages (manufacturer name, Responsible Person, safety warnings) through product metafields and theme customisation. Shopify Markets allows differentiated content per country, which can be used to show EU-required information to EU customers only.
The actual Article 9 document layer
Shopify does not generate the Article 9 technical file, does not produce or sign the Declaration of Conformity, does not act as the EU Responsible Person, does not verify that the manufacturer data entered is correct, and does not respond to market surveillance authority requests on the merchant’s behalf. These obligations sit with the brand owner — you — regardless of which commerce platform you use.
When evaluating a Shopify app, ask specifically: does it produce a downloadable Article 9 risk analysis that you keep on file and can send to a retailer or an authority on request? Most apps do not. GPSRCheck is a separate tool that does exactly that — and the PDF it generates is yours, not rented through an app subscription.
The Shopify brand compliance stack, end to end
Technical file per SKU — GPSRCheck handles this
Generated in GPSRCheck. Stored by you (Google Drive, Dropbox, Notion, anywhere). Sent to retailers or authorities on request. One-time €49 per product.
Product page disclosure — Shopify theme work
Manufacturer name and address, EU Responsible Person contact, safety warnings and use instructions, all displayed on the product page in the EU customer’s language. Handled on the platform side, not by GPSRCheck.
EU Responsible Person service — separate contract
Contracted from an EU-based provider separately. Typical cost €150 to €300 per year. Their name and contact goes both on the product label (physical) and on the product page (digital).
Physical label on product or packaging — GPSRCheck page 6
Generated as page 6 of the GPSRCheck PDF, printed and applied to each unit before it ships from your warehouse or fulfilment centre.
Record retention — 10 years
The technical file must be retained for 10 years from the date the last unit was placed on the market. Keep your GPSRCheck PDFs backed up in at least two locations.
The layers that GPSRCheck handles (1 and 4, plus the Declaration that supports layer 2) are the hardest to produce. Layers 2 and 3 are platform configuration and a contracted service.
What’s in the 6-page PDF
Product identification and traceability
Manufacturer name and address, EU Responsible Person placeholder, SKU, batch reference, product category.
Product description, intended use and foreseeable misuse scenarios
How the product is designed to be used, and what a reasonable user might do with it outside that scope.
Article 9 internal risk analysis
Hazard identification, likelihood and severity assessment, mitigation measures, residual risk statement.
EU Declaration of Conformity
Signed template referencing Regulation (EU) 2023/988 and any additional applicable directives (LVD, EMC, RoHS, toy safety, etc. as applicable).
Printable product label
Traceability block and EU Responsible Person placeholder, ready to print at 45×25 mm or scale up.
Every page is generated locally in your browser. Nothing is uploaded to our servers. The file is yours the moment you close the tab.
The technical file and the EU Responsible Person: two separate things
The GPSR has two distinct compliance layers for non-EU sellers, and vendors in this market often bundle them into one expensive annual contract. They don’t have to be bundled.
The technical file
The documented internal risk analysis, the EU Declaration of Conformity, the product label with traceability data. This is the document Amazon Seller Central asks you to upload. GPSRCheck generates it in 10 minutes for €49 per SKU. One license per SKU. The PDF you download is yours permanently and does not expire. The license lets you regenerate the file up to 10 times within 30 days from first activation to correct details.
The EU Responsible Person
Every non-EU manufacturer must appoint an EU-established economic operator as regulatory contact — a service, not a document. Typical pricing €150 to €300 per year. You can pick any provider and combine it with your GPSRCheck files. The PDF you download is yours to keep and is not tied to any Responsible Person contract.
The industry standard is to bundle both layers into a single annual subscription of €199 to €2,000, which means you cannot leave the vendor without losing access to your own documentation. We decouple the two on purpose: you own the document, you pick the Responsible Person separately, and if you ever change provider, your files travel with you.
Enforcement reality — the timeline that built this market
Amazon started suspending EU listings without a valid EU Responsible Person — eight months before the GPSR’s official entry into force. Amazon moved ahead of the regulator.
Regulation (EU) 2023/988 entered into force across all 27 EU member states plus Northern Ireland. Every non-food consumer product placed on the EU market must have a documented Article 9 internal risk analysis and an EU Responsible Person under Article 16.
When a market surveillance authority in any EU member state issues a reasoned request for the technical file, the economic operator has ten days to provide it. Missing this window is treated as a presumption of non-compliance and triggers listing removal, cargo detention or sales ban.
Member states are implementing national penalty regimes. Germany additionally imposes criminal penalties of up to one year of imprisonment. France allows proportional fines up to 10% of annual turnover. Italy, Spain, Netherlands and Poland have enacted comparable ranges.
Products flagged as non-compliant are listed publicly, by brand and model. Inclusion is permanent and searchable — the reputational damage outlasts any fine.
Customs may detain shipments without valid GPSR documentation, accruing daily storage costs until documentation is produced or the shipment is returned.
Why GPSRCheck rather than a consultancy or an annual subscription?
| Consultancy | Annual subscription platform | GPSRCheck | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | €400–2,000 per product | €199–600 per year | €49 per product |
| Time to delivery | 3–15 business days | 48h onboarding + setup | 10 minutes |
| Billing model | Quote-based invoice | Annual recurring | One payment per SKU · Permanent PDF · 30-day edit window |
| EU Responsible Person | Included in package | Included in package | Separate (pick any provider) |
| Legal basis | Art. 9 Reg. (EU) 2023/988 | Art. 9 Reg. (EU) 2023/988 | Art. 9 Reg. (EU) 2023/988 |
| Data handling | Sent to consultancy | Stored on vendor servers | 100% in your browser |
| Portability | File belongs to consultancy | File tied to subscription | File is yours, travel-ready |
20 products in your line? One file at a time is not a plan.
Need GPSR technical files at volume? For high-volume product lines and special pricing, visit solidwaretools.com or email hello@solidwaretools.com.
Commercial enquiriesFrequently asked questions
I use a Shopify app that says it handles GPSR compliance. Do I still need GPSRCheck?
My Shopify store uses Printful or Printify for fulfilment. Does the fulfilment partner generate the GPSR file?
Does the GPSR apply if I ship one unit at a time to EU customers from outside the EU?
Can I block EU orders in Shopify to avoid GPSR entirely?
What about the UK? Does the GPSR apply to Shopify brands selling to British customers?
How do I attach the GPSR PDF to a Shopify product for internal reference?
⚠️ Important notice: GPSRCheck is a self-assessment documentation tool, not legal advice and not a product testing service. The Article 9 technical file is generated from your input data. GPSRCheck does not provide the EU Responsible Person service.