Important Customer Update – US Tariffs

by with No Comment Product News

Happy March and Welcome Back to my Small Business Blog and online shop.

It’s been a slow couple of months no thanks to GPSR and cost of living but I plug on. The one thing I need to keep an eye on while running a business is the frequent changes to tax and customs charges. Which is almost a full-time job, let alone any other job a small business owner needs to do.

The most recent update is the 25% tariff fees on certain products that were introduced by the current US government on 12th March 2025. So let’s take a look at it and what it could mean to myself, fellow small businesses and US customers.

What Is It?

“The US tariffs of up to 25% will apply on industrial-grade steel and aluminium, other steel and aluminium semifinished and finished products, and also their derivative commercial products” Source

On March 12th 2025, the USA imposed a tariff on all imports of aluminium and steel products. This particular tariff is world wide (not just to Canada, Mexico and China like other tariffs that have recently been introduced).

This means that any product sold that is made from aluminium or steel that is sent to the USA will have an additional charge put on them at US customs. I’m not sure about items marked as “Gift” on customs paperwork if they are exempt or not.

Will it Affect Me?

If you live outside the USA, then no. It is only for imports going into the USA. If you sell aluminium and steel based products to US customers or buy steel or aluminium from outside the US then it will affect you.

How Will It Affect Me?

In a nutshell, US buyers will be charged 25% by US Customs. Unlike how it is reported by some, the seller will not be footing the bill for these tariffs/charges. It is even within Etsy terms and conditions that the customer is responsible for paying any customs charges/tariffs

It will mean delays to customers receiving their item due to customs awaiting the additional charges to be paid. And customers being unhappy because they were unaware of these additional charges.

How Will it Affect Small/Micro Businesses?

This could have an affect on businesses. Especially those who are run by one or 2 people, like myself at Panda Motion Designs.

The sellers will not be charged the 25%, but buyers will be put off buying items from outside the USA due to the tariffs. And of course there will be customers who were unaware of the charges and will not pay it or they expect the seller to pay it. Resulting in the item potentially being returned to the seller due to unpaid fees, resulting in loss of income.

What is key here is to have good communication with the buyer. Letting them know about these charges they could receive early on in the order process so they could make a decision to continue or not. I already have a text template ready to send to a USA customer when an order comes in.

Which Panda Motion Designs products are affected?

This will affect my A5/A6 aluminium signs, aluminium bookmarks and the stainless steel water bottles.

Since the tariff covers industrial-grade, semi-finished and finished steel and aluminium products the items I have listed above will receive a 25% tariff charge at US Customs.

It will only be a couple of additional dollars required for US customers to pay. It will still be off putting for many. And since my most popular products are the aluminium signs I am expecting to see a reduction in sales sadly. I have read that the UK government are in talks with the US government to reduce or remove this tariff from UK products but it may be a while before that happens (if it does)

Conclusion

In conclusion, another set back for many small businesses. Especially those that are run by only 1 or 2 people like myself.

What’s the point? Well the aim is to promote US based steel and aluminium productions/sales. Wither you agree with this or not. It is here and it’s important to clearly communicate things between the customer and buyer to avoid confusion and anger.

I plan on messaging customers as soon as possible once an order is placed and I see it is going to the US and begin the conversation early as long as the tariffs are in place. Who knows what will happen later on down the line, will just have to wait and watch.

I will update on this blog if their are any changes. Please feel free to comment below or follow me on social media for updates.

IMPORTANT Shop Update – GPSR: What It Means To My Small/Micro Business

by with No Comment Product News
Photo by 2H Media on Unsplash

Hello There

Long time no blog. It’s been a busy few weeks here at Panda Motion Designs, hence why there hasn’t been much blog posting lately.

I am posting about something important today that will have an affect on my business and many other micro/small businesses out there. The General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR), a new EU regulation that will take affect on December 13th 2024. I only recently learned about this regulation thanks to my fellow users on Threads and it will have a big affect on who and where I can sell my products.

In a nutshell, it means, that as of 13th December 2024, I will not be able to sell to anyone in the EU. Via either my website or Etsy.

Let’s take a look at it in some bitesize pieces. As of November 2024, there is surprisingly very little information about it so I will shut my shop to EU buyers just to safe until things are made clearer. If it does I will post updates to this blog.

*Updated: 26/20/2025

Updated: 09/01/2025

Updated: 17/12/2024

What is GPSR?

The General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR), aims to ensure the sale of safe products to customers/buyers in the European Union (EU) and Northern Ireland (NI). Both new and second hand products. There are specific rules/regulations that must be followed by businesses/individuals that sell to the EU & NI regarding product safety.

What Are These Specific Rules/Regulations?

Good question. This is where it starts to get confusing, but will try my best to explain.

To comply with this new regulation you must have the following information included on your labels and invoices:

  • Manufactures name and contact information
  • Name and contact information of a nominated authorised EU representative if your business is not based in the EU
  • Relevant product information (pictures, model number, etc)
  • Product safety compliance information in the local language (E.g. Warning labels and safety information)
  • CE label if required

Are There Any Exemptions?

GPSR applies to all non-food products. The following is excluded:

  • Medicinal products
  • Food and feed products
  • Living animals and plants
  • Genetically modified organisms and microorganisms
  • Animal by-products
  • Plant protection products, also referred to as pesticides 
  • Plant and animal products related to their reproduction
  • Antiques
  • Certain types of aircraft
  • Travel equipment operated by a service provider to transport consumers
  • Products that need to be repaired, reconditioned, or recycled prior to being used and are clearly marked as such

This list was copy and pasted from eBay.

This list is somewhat vague and many are confused as to whether or not their product falls under this list or not. Sadly, non of my products fall under any of these exemptions.

***Updated 17/12/2024***

I have seen some people saying or have been advised; that anything made before the 13th December 2024 is exempt from GPSR. Now I am not sure how accurate this is as it’s still very unclear in the rules. For now I am airing on the side of caution

***Updated 09/01/2025***

Digital products ARE NOT EXEMPT from GPSR. Etsy confirmed this in the seller handbook but they are awaiting further clarification

Does This Affect my UK Based Business?

If you are based in England, Scotland or Wales, and any other country that is not a member of the EU, then yes it will affect you. If you are based in Northern Ireland it won’t affect you as NI is still considered part of the EU as it has stayed within the single market.

You will not be able to sell anything to the EU or Northern Ireland, unless you follow and comply with the regulations. Mostly, appointing an European Authorized Representative (E.A.R) will have the biggest impact. You won’t need one if your business is based within the EU but it is a requirement for anyone outside the EU.

And, they are not cheap. I have seen people quoted hundreds, even thousands of pounds (GBP) and it’s just not financial viable for me to appoint one when it will cost me a lot more than I actually make in sales in a year.

How do I Appoint an E.A.R?

eBay has a list of companies in it’s FAQs about GPSR. It is a good place to start.

What Happens if I Do Not Comply?

That’s up to you if you don’t wish to comply. I have seen many on social media decide that they will take the risk.

You may be faced with fines, product recall and even being banned. If you have a marketplace shop such as Etsy then Etsy will shut your shop down or suspend you.

For me personally it isn’t worth the risk. I will changing my delivery profiles on Etsy soon to prevent my shop from being seen by anyone in the EU in time for 13th December, my website will follow suit soon after. There is a grace period, but it’s not clear as to how long that grace period is.

What About Northern Ireland?

Lets add more confusion into the mix. As Northern Ireland is part of the single market in the EU (They use Euros as well) it still falls under the GPSR, same as mainland Europe. Despite it being a member of the UK. Confused? Yup you’re not the only one.

What is also adding to the confusion are some delivery profiles on marketplace sites are not separating NI as it’s own separate profile. One being Etsy adding to the confusion. This is making it very difficult to remove NI as a place you can’t deliver to as it falls under “UK” profiles, making it very difficult to be compliant. I am going to be watching the situation on Etsy, as I simply cannot remove UK from my delivery profile as I ship mostly to UK and USA.

Once I have an update I will post an update on here.

***UPDATE – 17/12/2024***

On 13th December (the day GPSR came into affect) Etsy made an announcement on the Seller Handbook concerning selling digital products and having the option to remove Northern Ireland as a option to ship to. In a nutshell, they are looking into it and plan to have an update on delivery profiles and digital products on 31st December 2024. I’m not sure why they have taken so long but hopefully this is going in the right direction.

Current advice is to cancel orders that come in. Which is not particularly helpful.

BBC Article

***UPDATE – 09/01/2024***

Etsy made an updated announcement over the holidays. The latest is they are planning on making the changes to allow the option to not sell to Northern Ireland in the delivery settings. This option will be for both digital and physical products being sold on Etsy. However, they won’t be starting to make these changes until the end of February 2025

***UPDATE – 26/02/2025***

Etsy has finally updated seller profiles and the option to sell or not to sell to EU and NI is now available. It can be found under Settings > Options on your Etsy Seller profile.

I Have Ordered from Your Shop before December 13th and I have an Issue, Can I still contact you?

Any items sold to the EU before 13th December are exempt for a certain period of time (the grace period which isn’t clear how long the grace period is) I will be able to send out before 13th December when this takes affect.

I believe this also covers any replacements I send for damaged or lost items. So don’t worry but please get in touch ASAP. Either via Etsy or email pandamotions@gmail.com

Until Next Time…

So in conclusion…I will not be selling to EU countries or Northern Ireland as of 13th December 2024. I will be updating my Etsy delivery profiles next week. This is just an awful regulation, especially at one of the busiest times of year for many micro/small businesses. I understand it, safety is important especially with some dodgy sellers out there but this particular regulation is making it more difficult than necessary. Hoping things will become clearer as time goes on and I may be able to sell again.

It’s extremely frustrating, and it’s not been the best year for profits either. I am hoping that as the regulation gets ‘older’ they will make adjustments to take businesses that are run by one person like Panda Motion Designs into account.

If you have any updates you wish to share, links or videos concerning the GPSR then please add it to the comments.

I hope this was of help to you and I appreciate you taking the time to read my blog.

If you have any questions please use the comment section below or use one of my social media channels. If you have a recommendation on software you would like to share, please share in the comments below, let’s all help each other to succeed.

Until Next Time…