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Origin Marking

Generally speaking, there is no requirement in the law of the United Kingdom nor European Union for goods to bear marks indicating their origin, nor is there anything to prevent voluntary origin marking where traders wish to do so.

However, where such marks are applied to goods, the Trade Descriptions Act 1968 effectively requires these marks to be accurate. The Act makes it a criminal offence for a person, in the course of business, to apply false or misleading trade descriptions to goods.

Please see the Guidance Note for traders and our Quick Facts page on Origin Marking for further advice.