Buyer guide 09 · 8 min read · Published
Care label requirements: what each market needs on a garment
Care label requirements differ by market, and the care and content label is the one part of a private label garment that a customs officer, a retail compliance team and a regulator may all read. Here are the core rules for five markets, what has to be on the label, and what you need to send your factory before labels go to print.
- Sells to
- Trade buyers only
- Makes
- 299 styles, 12 sports
- Factory
- Sialkot, Pakistan
- Minimum
- 12 pcs per style
- Prices
- Blank, decoration quoted
- Production
- About 2 weeks
01Care label requirements at a glance
A care label, also called a care tag, does two jobs. It tells the end user how to wash and dry the garment, and it carries the content information regulators ask for: fiber names and percentages, the responsible company and, in some markets, the country of origin. Most brands combine both on one sewn-in label, with the main brand label kept separate.
The table below is the short version. Each market is covered in detail further down.
- United States: fiber content, country of origin, RN or company name, and a permanent care instruction. Youth garments add a CPSIA tracking label.
- Canada: bilingual English and French fiber content plus a CA number or full dealer name and address. Care is voluntary but expected.
- European Union: approved fiber names in the local language of each country of sale, plus product safety details. Care symbols are voluntary.
- United Kingdom: approved fiber names in English, plus producer or importer details.
- Australia: a mandatory care label. Fiber content is voluntary but retailers usually ask for it.
02Who is responsible for the label
The brand or importer that puts the garment on the market is responsible for its label. The factory makes the label to your text and lays it out to the rules you name. We send a proof of each label for your approval, but the final legal check belongs to you or your compliance advisor. Our page on apparel compliance by market lists the documents we prepare for each country.
Send us three things before we print: the list of markets you sell into, your identification numbers (RN, CA number or company details), and your care instructions or approval to use our recommended care for the fabric.
03United States: FTC fiber, origin, identity and care
The FTC Textile Act rules require three items on most apparel: fiber content by generic name and percentage by weight (for example 100% Polyester, or 88% Polyester 12% Spandex), country of origin, and the identity of the company responsible, either its name or its RN. On garments with a neck, the origin must appear on a label inside the center of the neck, on the front or back of the label. For our goods that reads Made in Pakistan.
The Care Labeling Rule adds a permanent care label with at least one safe method of care and warnings where needed. Words or the ASTM care symbols are both accepted. The label must stay legible through the life of the garment, so choose woven, printed satin or heat-transfer tagless labels and wash-check them on the approved sample before bulk.
An RN is issued free by the FTC to US companies. Non-US brands selling into the US use their registered company name instead.
04US youth sizes: CPSIA tracking labels
Garments designed mainly for children 12 and under count as children's products under CPSIA. They need a permanent tracking label showing the manufacturer or private labeler, the place and date of production, and batch or cohort details. A paper sticker on the polybag does not meet the rule; the information must be on the garment.
Children's products also need third-party testing at a CPSC-accepted lab and a Children's Product Certificate issued by the importer. Lead limits apply to inks and trims as well as fabric. Tell us at quote stage if any size in the run is youth, because it changes the label set and the testing plan.
05Canada: bilingual text and the CA number
Under Canada's Textile Labelling Act, fiber content must appear in both English and French, for example 100% polyester / 100 % polyester, with generic fiber names in each language. The label also needs the dealer's identity, either full name and postal address or a CA identification number issued by the Competition Bureau.
Care labeling in Canada is voluntary, but most retailers require it, and Canada's care symbol standard is aligned with the ASTM symbols used in the US. If you sell in both the US and Canada, one bilingual label with RN and CA numbers covers both.
06European Union and United Kingdom
EU Regulation 1007/2011 sets the fiber names that can be used, and the label must be in the official language or languages of each member state where the garment is sold. A line sold across the EU often carries a multilingual fiber block. Country of origin is not required by this regulation, and care symbols are voluntary, though retailers expect them.
The EU General Product Safety Regulation also expects the manufacturer's details, a product or batch identifier, and, for goods from outside the EU, an EU-based responsible economic operator. That is usually you or your importer, so give us the name and address to print.
The UK follows its own Textile Products (Labelling and Fibre Composition) Regulations 2012, which mirror the EU fiber names. Labels for the UK market need English. Product safety rules ask for the producer or importer details on the product or its packaging.
- EU: approved fiber names in local languages, GPSR details, voluntary care symbols.
- UK: approved fiber names in English, producer or importer details.
07Australia: mandatory care labels
Australia makes care labeling mandatory for clothing under the Consumer Goods (Care Labelling) Information Standard 2023. Since March 2024, symbols on their own are acceptable, which lets one symbol-based care label work across several markets. Fiber content is covered by a voluntary standard, but retailers usually require it.
Honest caveat: these are the core rules only. Retailers often add their own label specifications, fonts, placements and test standards, and some product types bring extra rules. Check your customer's vendor manual as well as the regulations, and confirm anything unclear with your compliance advisor or customs broker.
08Care symbols, label materials and placement
Care symbols are a compact way to cover several markets with one label. The US accepts the ASTM symbols, Canada's standard is aligned with them, and Australia now accepts symbols alone. Many EU retailers ask for the European care symbol set, which is a registered system with its own licensing terms, so check your customer's vendor manual before you choose a set.
The label itself has to stay readable for the life of the garment. Woven labels are the most durable. Printed satin labels hold small text well and cost less. Heat-transfer tagless labels avoid neck irritation on game jerseys and compression wear, but the print must survive repeated washing at the stated temperature, so wash-check them on the approved sample. You can see the options side by side on our woven labels and packaging page.
Placement matters as much as content. Apart from the US neck rule for origin, most retailers want the care label on the left side seam, a set distance above the hem. Write the placement into your spec so every reorder repeats it.
09What to send us
Labels are made with the order, so the text has to be approved on the proof before production starts. A single spreadsheet per style keeps it simple. If you are setting up a house brand, our private label sportswear program covers the main label, size label, care label, hang tags and packaging in one approval.
- Markets and languages per style.
- RN, CA number, or company name and address, plus any EU or UK operator details.
- Fiber content as confirmed on the approved fabric.
- Care instructions or approval to use our recommended care.
- Label type (woven, printed satin, tagless) and position.
Q&AQuestions buyers ask
What is required on a care label?
It depends on the market. In the US a garment needs fiber content, country of origin, the responsible company or its RN, and at least one safe care method. Canada adds bilingual fiber content and a CA number, and Australia makes the care instruction itself mandatory. Check every market you sell into before the label text is approved.
Are care tags required by law?
In the US and Australia, a permanent care instruction is a legal requirement for most clothing. In Canada, the EU and the UK, care information is voluntary, but fiber content rules are mandatory and most retailers require care symbols anyway. In practice, every garment sold through a retailer carries a care label.
Can one label cover the US, Canada and the EU?
Often, with care. A combined label can carry fiber content in English, French and other EU languages, Made in Pakistan, your RN and CA number, symbol-based care and EU operator details. It gets long, so many brands split the content across two labels. Check each market's fiber naming rules, because some names differ between US and EU lists.
Do youth jerseys need different labels in the US?
Yes. Products designed mainly for children 12 and under need a permanent CPSIA tracking label with the private labeler, production place and date, and batch details. They also need testing at a CPSC-accepted lab and a Children's Product Certificate from the importer. Tell us at quote stage so we plan the label set and test samples.
Do I need my own RN number?
For the US, a garment must name the responsible company or carry its RN. US companies can get an RN free from the FTC, and it keeps the label short. Non-US brands use their company name. Canada uses a CA number, or full name and postal address. We print whichever identity you supply.