Etsy to make it easier for GB sellers to reject NI orders

Online marketplace Etsy has said it intends to follow other e-commerce sites by making it easier for sellers in Great Britain to stop selling to Northern Ireland.

New EU rules mean small businesses in Great Britain must conform to stricter requirements if they want to sell to Northern Ireland or the EU.

Some platforms, like eBay, have responded by allowing sellers in Great Britain to effectively turn down orders to Northern Ireland.

Etsy says it is intending to do the same early next year after pressure from GB sellers.

In an update to its seller handbook, it said: "We are actively looking into a solution for sellers who wish to discontinue offering their items to Northern Ireland buyers.

"We will provide an update on timing by December 31, 2024."

Another platform, Folksy, has changed its delivery regions so that the UK now excludes Northern Ireland. Its Europe delivery region is now EU and Northern Ireland.

The EU's General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) came into effect last week. It applies in Northern Ireland as the Windsor Framework means the region is still effectively in the EU's single market for goods.

The GPSR updates existing rules to reflect the growth of online commerce and aims to give better protections for consumers.

That includes the need to have a "responsible person", which is effectively a compliance agent, inside the EU or Northern Ireland.

That is a particular challenge for small businesses in Great Britain who are selling direct to consumers who have no physical presence in the EU or Northern Ireland.

Etsy's seller handbook warns that if it gets a notification from an authority that a product is non-compliant with GPSR, it will take appropriate action "which may include removing your listing and/or suspending your account".