# German Textile Labelling Rules for Imported Apparel > Source: https://surajmal.com/blog/2026/03/german-textile-labelling-requirements [SSL Newsroom](/blog) Compliance # German Textile Labelling: Fibre Composition, Language and Records Kolkata · 17 MARCH 2026 ·By Surajmal Editorial Team·9 min read Published 17 March 2026 Most of a garment label for Germany is set by EU law, and one part of it is not. The part that is not catches suppliers out, because it does not appear in the EU regulation at all and it cannot be satisfied by a multilingual label that happens to include German somewhere in a list of eleven languages. This is the label brief for German-market apparel: which instrument governs what, what the fibre declaration has to say, what care labelling is and is not, and which records have to survive the shipment. ## Which rule governs a textile label in Germany? Two instruments, working together. Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 sets the EU-wide rules on textile fibre names, on the labelling and marking of fibre composition, and on labelling products that contain non-textile parts of animal origin. It requires that a textile product be labelled or marked to indicate its fibre composition whenever it is made available on the market, and that the information be durable, legible, visible and accessible, with the label securely attached. The Textilkennzeichnungsgesetz of 15 February 2016 is the German implementing act. It states in its opening section that it applies in addition to Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 and regulates that regulation's implementation in Germany. It also carries the national provision that the EU regulation leaves to member states: the language. So the content of the declaration is European and the language of the declaration is German. A supplier who prepares only to the EU regulation produces a technically accurate label that still fails the national requirement. Question Instrument Where it is settled Which fibre names may be used Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 EU-wide, harmonised list Whether a label is required at all Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 Required whenever the product is made available Which language the declaration is in Textilkennzeichnungsgesetz German, for the German market Whether care symbols are required Neither Not a fibre-labelling requirement How long the supporting records are kept Textilkennzeichnungsgesetz Two calendar years, by manufacturer or importer ## Does the fibre composition have to be in German? Yes. The German act provides that textile products may be made available on the market only where they are labelled or marked in German to indicate their fibre composition, in accordance with the relevant articles of the EU regulation. Further languages are expressly permitted in addition, so a multilingual label is fine as long as the German version is there and correct. The EU regulation reaches the same place by a different route: it requires labelling in the official language or languages of the member state where the product is made available to the consumer, unless that member state provides otherwise. Germany has legislated on the point rather than departing from it. The practical consequence for a range shipping across several EU destinations is that the label set is planned per destination, not per product. Where the same physical garment goes to Germany and elsewhere, either the label carries every required language or the packing separates the destination versions. Both work. Deciding which one at the artwork stage is much cheaper than deciding it at the port. ## What counts as fibre composition, component by component The declaration is about materials, not about what the garment is called. A multi-fibre product lists its constituent fibres with percentages in descending order. A product made of more than one textile component, where those components have different fibre contents, needs the content of each component stated, with limited exceptions for minor parts. Where a product contains non-textile parts of animal origin, that has to be indicated. The regulation also governs how the information appears: fibre composition descriptions are given on packaging, labels and markings, and in catalogues and trade literature, in a way that is easily legible, visible and clear, in uniform print as regards size, style and font. A trade mark may sit immediately before or after the description; other information is displayed separately. This is where a bill of materials earns its keep. A padded jacket is rarely one composition. Shell, lining, filling, rib, pocketing, a contrast panel and a woven badge can each be different, and the declaration follows the actual construction, not the fabric that dominates the hand feel. Two rules in the EU regulation do most of the work of deciding what actually has to appear, and a bill of materials is checked against both rather than declared component by component. Annex VII lists items left out of the fibre composition altogether: interlinings and canvas backings, stiffenings and reinforcements, stitching and assembly threads unless they replace the warp or weft, and fillings that have no insulating function. Separately, for a product with more than one textile component, a component that is not a main lining and represents less than 30 per cent of the total weight of the product does not need its own statement. So the table below is a check to run against those rules, not a list of statements a garment will carry. Component on the tech pack What the label check has to answer Shell fabric Confirmed composition against the approved fabric, not the development sample Lining Different composition, so does it need its own statement Filling or wadding Declared where it insulates; a filling with no insulating function is excluded by Annex VII Rib, cuff, waistband Often a different blend from the body Contrast panels and pocketing Counted where their content differs, subject to the 30 per cent test Interlinings, stiffenings, assembly threads Excluded by Annex VII unless a thread replaces the warp or weft Leather or fur trim, horn or bone buttons Triggers the non-textile animal origin indication Woven labels and badges Checked, then excluded where they fall under an exemption ## Is care labelling a legal requirement in Germany? Not under the textile fibre regulation. That instrument is about fibre names, fibre composition and non-textile parts of animal origin. Care instructions sit outside its scope; the regulation only anticipates a possible future harmonised care-labelling system as something to be examined. Care labelling is nonetheless on almost every garment sold in Germany, and it is on there for two reasons that have nothing to do with textile-labelling law. Retailers require it in their own specifications, and a care instruction that is absent or wrong exposes the seller under general product and consumer law when a garment is damaged by following it. The supplier-side consequence is that care copy is a commercial requirement supported by test evidence. Wash tests, dimensional stability and colourfastness results are what make a care symbol defensible, and those tests belong in the development plan for the style, not in a retrospective file. The wider [garment labelling and care-label guide](/blog/2026/06/garment-labelling-care-label-export-requirements) sets out how the care brief is built. ## Who carries the labelling responsibility? Under the EU regulation, when placing a textile product on the market the manufacturer ensures the supply of the label or marking and the accuracy of the information on it. Where there is no manufacturer established in the EU, the importer takes on that responsibility. Distributors carry obligations of their own when they make products available. The German act tracks that structure. It sets out the obligation of manufacturers and importers to apply the labelling and to ensure the information is accurate, so that the product's fibre composition matches what is declared, and a separate obligation on distributors making products available to ensure the labelling is there. It also applies the same requirements to textile products offered for sale by electronic means. For an export house shipping to a German importer, the reading is straightforward. The legal responsibility sits with the importer, and the importer's ability to discharge it depends entirely on what the supplier hands over. That is a working relationship, not a transfer of liability, and it is why the artwork approval and the test file travel together. One useful provision for the business-to-business stage: the German act allows the labelling or marking to be replaced or supplemented by accompanying commercial documents where the products are supplied to economic operators in the supply chain, or to fulfil a public contract. Bulk fabric moving between operators is not the same problem as a garment on a rail. ## What records sit behind the declaration The German act requires manufacturers and importers to keep records of the facts on which the labelling or marking of the fibre composition is based, for two calendar years. The period runs from the end of the calendar year in which the last of the products covered by those records was placed on the market. Distributors keep their equivalent records for as long as the products are made available. That is a documentation duty with a real clock on it, and it is the one most often overlooked, because it applies after the goods are gone. What it means in practice is that the file behind a fibre declaration has to be assembled while the order is running, when the mill invoice, the blend sheet and the composition test are all in reach. Record Why it supports the declaration When to capture it Approved fabric specification States the blend the label is based on At fabric approval Mill invoice or delivery note Ties the blend to the goods actually received On fabric receipt Composition test report Independent confirmation of the declared blend Before bulk artwork release Trim and component register Identifies parts with a different content, and animal-origin parts At bill of materials sign-off Approved label artwork and physical proof Shows what was actually declared Before bulk ## Where the label goes wrong between sample and bulk Almost every failed label was correct once. The failure is a change that happened downstream of the approval and never reached the artwork. A lining is substituted when the original is unavailable. A rib is re-specified for a better recovery. A filling weight changes and the filling type changes with it. A leather patch is added at the buyer's request three weeks before shipment, which introduces the animal-origin indication onto artwork that was signed off without it. Each of these is a normal production event; none of them announces itself as a labelling problem. Two controls handle most of it. Freeze the declaration only after bulk material approvals are stable, and route any post-approval material change through the same person who owns the label brief. On a German programme, add a third: confirm the German wording is on the artwork that actually went to the label supplier, and not only on the version that circulated for comment. The [Germany import guide](/markets/germany) sets out the wider document set a German programme carries, including the audit and certification records that sit alongside the label file. ## FAQ **Must the fibre composition be in German for the German market?** Yes. The German textile labelling act requires textile products to be labelled or marked in German to indicate their fibre composition. Other languages may be added alongside it. **Does a care label satisfy German textile labelling law?** No. The textile rules govern fibre composition and non-textile parts of animal origin. Care instructions fall outside them, though retailers require care labelling in their own specifications and general product law still applies. **Who is legally responsible for the label on an imported garment?** The manufacturer placing the product on the EU market, or the importer where there is no EU manufacturer, with separate obligations on distributors. In practice the importer relies on the supplier's artwork and test file. **How long do the supporting records have to be kept?** Two calendar years for manufacturers and importers, counted from the end of the calendar year in which the last product covered by those records was placed on the market. **Does every component of a garment need its own composition statement?** Where a product has more than one textile component with different fibre contents, the content of each is stated, subject to limited exceptions for minor parts. Map the components from the bill of materials before releasing artwork. Related pages - [Germany import guide→](/markets/germany) - [European Union import guide→](/markets/european-union) Share[](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsurajmal.com%2Fblog%2F2026%2F03%2Fgerman-textile-labelling-requirements) [](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsurajmal.com%2Fblog%2F2026%2F03%2Fgerman-textile-labelling-requirements&text=German%20Textile%20Labelling%3A%20Fibre%20Composition%2C%20Language%20and%20Records) [](https://wa.me/?text=German%20Textile%20Labelling%3A%20Fibre%20Composition%2C%20Language%20and%20Records%20https%3A%2F%2Fsurajmal.com%2Fblog%2F2026%2F03%2Fgerman-textile-labelling-requirements) [](mailto:?subject=German%20Textile%20Labelling%3A%20Fibre%20Composition%2C%20Language%20and%20Records&body=https%3A%2F%2Fsurajmal.com%2Fblog%2F2026%2F03%2Fgerman-textile-labelling-requirements) SSL Surajmal Editorial Team The Surajmal Editorial Team writes from inside a working textile export house in Kolkata, drawing on experience manufacturing garments, fabrics, and yarns for global retail buyers since 1968. Every article is reviewed by practitioners who source, sample, and ship the products they write about. On this page - [Which rule governs a textile label in Germany?](#which-rule-governs-a-textile-label-in-germany) - [Does the fibre composition have to be in German?](#does-the-fibre-composition-have-to-be-in-german) - [What counts as fibre composition, component by component](#what-counts-as-fibre-composition-component-by-component) - [Is care labelling a legal requirement in Germany?](#is-care-labelling-a-legal-requirement-in-germany) - [Who carries the labelling responsibility?](#who-carries-the-labelling-responsibility) - [What records sit behind the declaration](#what-records-sit-behind-the-declaration) - [Where the label goes wrong between sample and bulk](#where-the-label-goes-wrong-between-sample-and-bulk) - [FAQ](#faq) More from the newsroom - [Compliance · 9 min Japan Apparel Labelling: Fibre Content, JIS Care Symbols and Labeller Details](/blog/2026/08/japan-apparel-labelling-jis-care-symbols) START A CONVERSATION ## Ready to source with _confidence?_ Send a brief and we'll reply within 24 hours, with a first sample in 4 to 10 days. 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