Many foreign trade enterprises manufacturing furniture, bedding, throw pillows and plush toys tend to overlook the mandatory Law Label compliance requirement when entering the US market. This leads to customs clearance hold-ups and delisting of online listings, resulting in avoidable financial losses.
The Law Label originated from US state-level consumer protection legislation in the early 20th century. It was designed to prevent poor-quality and unsanitary filling materials from entering the market and safeguard consumers’ right to know. This state-mandated labeling system applies exclusively to products containing internal filling materials and is not a unified federal regulation. Simply put, it acts as an “internal product specification sheet” sewn onto the product, fully disclosing the composition and proportion of hidden filling materials invisible to consumers.
Products subject to Law Label regulation include mattresses, sofas, upholstered cushions, pillows, quilts, throw cushions, pet upholstered furniture and filled plush toys. Any product containing foam, fiber, down, springs or other filling materials falls within the scope of regulation. Currently, 32 US states mandate the Law Label. Among them, 14 states additionally require URN (Uniform Registration Number) registration. Once obtained, the URN is valid across all these registering states.
The Law Label has clear physical requirements. It must be made of wear-resistant and tear-resistant materials, typically non-woven Tyvek fabric, and permanently sewn onto a visible spot such as the side or bottom of the product. Printing the information only on outer packaging or hangtags is not permitted, as labels on outer packaging are not accepted by regulators or e-commerce platforms. The iconic warning statement on the label reads: “UNDER PENALTY OF LAW THIS TAG NOT TO BE REMOVED EXCEPT BY THE CONSUMER”. It means traders, distributors and manufacturers are prohibited from removing the tag except by the end consumer, and the label must remain intact throughout distribution and sales.
Many foreign trade practitioners confuse the URN registration number with the Law Label. The URN serves as the registered identity number for the factory or importer, while the Law Label is the physical tag printed and affixed on products. They must be used together; neither can stand alone. To sell into the US compliantly, enterprises need both URN registration and properly designed and sewn Law Labels. Together, they form the basic market access requirements for filled products exported to the United States.