Furniture fire safety rules for UK importers of upholstered goods

The rules that apply today

The Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 set flammability requirements for domestic upholstered furniture supplied in the UK. They were last changed by amending regulations that came into force on 30 October 2025.

Responsibility for testing sits with the first supplier in the UK. When you import from China, that is normally you. Retailers must make sure the labels are attached and the products are safe, but they are not responsible for testing unless they are also the importer.

The furniture rules sit alongside general product safety law. Products outside the furniture rules, such as the baby products taken out of scope in 2025, still have to be safe under the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 in Great Britain.

What is in scope

• Upholstered furniture for the home, including beds, sofa beds, futons, cushions and mattresses.
• Pillows.
• Garden and outdoor furniture that is suitable for use in a dwelling.
• Scatter cushions and seat pads, where only the filling has to comply.
• Loose and stretch covers, and covers for parts you cannot see.
• Upholstery in caravans.

Bedding and floor coverings such as carpets and mats are outside the rules. Since 30 October 2025, so is a list of baby and young children's products, including prams and pushchairs, cots and travel cots, highchairs, play mats, changing mats, baby walkers, and children's mattresses smaller than 170cm by 75cm.

The tests

The tests are set out in schedules to the regulations. In summary:

• Cigarette test (Schedule 4): furniture containing upholstery composites must pass.
• Match test (Schedule 5): furniture with permanent, loose or stretch covers must pass.
• Filling tests: foam fillings must meet Schedule 1 and non-foam fillings Schedule 2. Mixed fillings either comply one by one or are tested together, and any foam in them must still meet Schedule 1.
• Interliner (Schedule 3): a cover that is not match resistant can be used with a match resistant interliner, and the label must say whether one is fitted.

Test certificates must be valid, in date and from an accredited laboratory, and you must be able to trace them through production to the goods you sell. Trading Standards officers look for certificates from accredited laboratories.

Labels after the 2025 changes

Since 30 October 2025 there is no requirement for a display label, sometimes called a swing label. Stock that already carries one can still be sold as long as the labelling is accurate.

The permanent label is still required. It must be durable and securely attached to an outside surface, on each piece of a suite and on loose and stretch covers, and it can be combined with a care label. A full label includes:

• The warning CARELESSNESS CAUSES FIRE.
• The name and postcode of the first UK supplier, which as importer is usually you.
• A batch or identification number.
• The date of manufacture or import.
• A description of the filling and covering materials.
• Whether there is a fire resistant interliner.

There is also a shorter version that summarises the compliance steps taken. Mattresses, divans and bed bases do not need the permanent label and are covered by BS 7177 instead. The exact wording and layout are in Schedule 7 to the regulations.

Records and your wider safety duties

Keep records, such as invoices and test certificates, that let you trace each batch to its tests and labels. Trading Standards guidance says to keep them for as long as you might need to trace, withdraw or recall the furniture.

As an importer you are also a producer under the General Product Safety Regulations 2005. In short, you must:

• Supply only safe products.
• Give clear warnings and instructions about risks that are not obvious.
• Monitor products on the market, including sample testing and keeping a register of safety complaints.
• Mark the product or its packaging with your name and address in Great Britain and a product reference or batch.
• Tell your local Trading Standards service without delay if a product you supplied is unsafe.

Since October 2025, enforcement authorities have 12 months rather than six to start proceedings for offences under the furniture rules. Our guide to getting set up to import covers product rules more broadly.

Proposed reforms: not decided

The government is planning a wider reform, but nothing beyond the October 2025 changes has been decided. The Office for Product Safety and Standards and the Department for Business and Trade consulted from 31 March to 23 June 2026. The proposals were:

• New requirements based on a smoulder test, ending mandatory open-flame tests such as the match test.
• A choice between testing components separately or testing them together.
• Moving re-upholstery, repair and second-hand furniture out of the furniture rules and under general product safety law.

The consultation document said the government was reassured that outdoor furniture should stay in scope. At the time of writing the consultation has closed and the government is analysing responses. It says the policy remains subject to review and may change, and that it will set out a timeline and transition period after considering responses.

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