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Selling toys in Australia

In Australia, toys must meet the mandatory safety standards and bans made under the Australian Consumer Law, enforced by the ACCC and state and territory regulators. Toys for under-3s, magnetic, projectile and aquatic toys each have a standard, as do lead in toys and products with button batteries. Supplying non-compliant or banned toys is prohibited.

Updated · Each section links to the official source it comes from

Legal basis
Australian Consumer Law, sections 104 to 118
Under 36 months
AS/NZS ISO 8124.1:2023, EN 71-1, ISO 8124-1 or ASTM F963-17
Lead and elements
AS/NZS ISO 8124.3 migration limits
Button batteries
Safety and information standards made in 2020
Permanent bans
Including small high-powered magnets and yo-yo water balls
Serious injury reports
To the Commonwealth Minister within 2 days

Before a product goes on sale

The questions to answer, in the order they usually come up.

  1. 1Is it a toy for a child up to 36 months, and which compliance option does it meet? Read more
  2. 2Does it contain magnets, projectiles, or is it an aquatic toy? Read more
  3. 3Has it been tested for lead and other elements? Read more
  4. 4Does it contain a button or coin battery, and are the compartment and warnings compliant? Read more
  5. 5Is the product caught by a permanent ban? Read more
  6. 6Who reports a serious injury or recall, and is there a trade description on imports? Read more

The rules, by area

What each area covers, the texts that set it, and what the official pages say.

Mandatory safety standards for toys

The safety standards for particular kinds of toy, made under section 104 of the Australian Consumer Law.

  • The ACCC says small parts are checked with a cylinder 31 mm wide and 57 mm long, and battery-operated toys for this age need a battery compartment that takes a tool to open.
  • The standard can apply to a toy labelled for older children if it is commonly recognised as suitable for children up to 36 months.
  • A person must not supply, or offer to supply, consumer goods that do not comply with a safety standard in force for that kind of goods (section 106).
  • A children's toy is an object manufactured, designed, labelled or marketed as a plaything for a child up to 36 months. It complies with one of AS/NZS ISO 8124.1:2023, EN 71-1:2014+A1:2018, ISO 8124-1:2022 or ASTM F963-17, plus the electric toy standard AS/NZS 62115:2018.
  • Balloons, marbles, books, writing and painting materials, modelling materials, playground equipment and flotation toys, among others, are outside that standard.
  • Magnetic toys and projectile toys for children under 14 have their own standards; projectile toys that could be aimed at the face carry 'WARNING: Do not aim at eyes or face'.
  • Aquatic toys, designed to bear a child's weight in shallow water, carry warnings in English that are clearly legible, visible and indelible.
  • On request, a supplier may have to nominate which compliance option a toy meets (section 108).

How we help: Compliant Always records which standard and compliance option each toy meets, and reads the test report against it, clause by clause. Ask about this

Lead, elements and phthalates

Chemical limits for children's toys and childcare articles.

  • Since 1 January 2010, children's toys meet AS/NZS ISO 8124.3:2003 on migration of certain elements, and finger paints meet clause 4.4 of AS 8124.7-2003.
  • That standard excludes sporting and camping goods, bicycles, playground equipment, trampolines, electronic game units and fashion jewellery for children.
  • Toys, childcare articles and eating vessels and utensils for children up to 36 months that contain more than 1% DEHP in a part that can be sucked or chewed are permanently banned.

How we help: Upload a lab report and Compliant Always reads the element migration and phthalate results against the limits that apply, with the source beside each. Ask about this

Button and coin batteries

Safety and information standards for products that contain button or coin batteries.

  • The battery must not be released during reasonably foreseeable use or misuse, and a compartment holding a replaceable battery must resist opening by young children; screws on its cover must be captive.
  • Representative samples are tested before supply under the standards the instrument names.
  • Packaged goods carry a safety alert symbol on the front panel, and a battery warning with an upper-case alert word such as WARNING goes in the instructions or on the goods.
  • Button and coin batteries themselves are sold in child-resistant packaging.
  • Where the toy standard and the battery standard cover the same matter, the battery standard's requirement applies.

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the battery compartment test results and the warning artwork with each product, and shows which are missing. Ask about this

Permanent bans

Toys and novelties that may not be supplied at all.

  • A person must not supply consumer goods covered by a permanent ban (section 118).
  • Small, high-powered magnets supplied in multiples are banned where at least two fit the small parts cylinder and have a flux index above 50 kG²mm², if marketed as a toy, game, puzzle, construction kit or mouth or nose jewellery.
  • Yo-yo water balls, with an elastic cord extending to 500 mm or more, are banned.
  • Inflatable toys, novelties or furniture that may be inflated by mouth and contain small beads or pellets are banned.

How we help: Compliant Always checks each product's description and specification against the bans in force, and records the result. Ask about this

Reporting, recalls and imports

What a supplier does when something goes wrong, and how toys come into Australia.

  • A supplier notifies the Commonwealth Minister within 2 days of becoming aware of a death or serious injury or illness that may have been caused by its goods (section 131).
  • A business that voluntarily recalls goods because they may cause injury, or do not meet a safety standard or ban, notifies the Commonwealth Minister within 2 days (section 128).
  • Toys are among the goods that cannot be imported without an English trade description stating the country where they were made.
  • Mandatory standards apply to overseas businesses selling to Australian consumers online, as well as to local businesses.

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the batch, test and distribution records a report or recall notice needs with each toy, so they are ready when asked for. Ask about this

Who answers for what

WhoWhat they answer forHow we help
ManufacturerDesigning and testing the toy to a compliance option, and battery safety.Test reports kept with each toy and batch, read against the standard.
ImporterSupplying only compliant toys, a trade description, and reporting within 2 days.Factory test reports read and dated before the goods arrive.
Retailer and online sellerNot supplying non-compliant, banned or recalled toys.Compliance records ready for the platform or regulator that asks.

States and territories

Food standards are developed by FSANZ and adopted without variation by the states and territories, whose agencies and local councils enforce the Food Standards Code. The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry enforces it at the border.

The Australian Consumer Law is enforced by the ACCC for widespread issues and by state and territory consumer protection agencies, which handle individual complaints.

Shipping out of Australia?

Exporting toys from Australia

Questions businesses ask

Which safety standard applies to toys for babies in Australia?
The Consumer Goods (Toys for Children up to and including 36 Months of Age) Safety Standard 2023. A toy complies with AS/NZS ISO 8124.1:2023, EN 71-1, ISO 8124-1:2022 or ASTM F963-17, plus AS/NZS 62115:2018 for electric toys.
Do toys tested to EN 71 meet Australian rules?
For toys for children up to 36 months, EN 71-1:2014+A1:2018 is one of the compliance options. Other mandatory standards, such as those for lead, magnets and button batteries, set their own requirements.
Are magnetic toys banned in Australia?
Magnetic toys for children under 14 must meet a safety standard. Separately, small high-powered magnets in sets, marketed as toys, games, puzzles, construction kits or mouth or nose jewellery, are permanently banned.
What are the rules for toys with button batteries?
The battery must not come out in foreseeable use or misuse, replaceable batteries sit in a child-resistant compartment with captive screws, samples are tested before supply, and warnings and a safety alert symbol go on packaging and instructions.
Is there a lead limit for toys in Australia?
Yes. Children's toys meet AS/NZS ISO 8124.3:2003 on migration of certain elements, and finger paints meet AS 8124.7-2003, under a safety standard in force since 1 January 2010.
Are phthalates restricted in toys?
Toys and childcare articles for children up to 36 months that contain more than 1% DEHP in a part that can be sucked or chewed are permanently banned.
Do I need to report an injury caused by a toy?
Yes. A supplier who becomes aware of a death or serious injury or illness that may have been caused by its goods notifies the Commonwealth Minister within 2 days (section 131 of the Australian Consumer Law).
Do Australian toy rules apply to overseas online sellers?
Yes. Business.gov.au says online product safety and the mandatory standards apply to overseas businesses selling to Australian consumers over the internet, as well as to local businesses.
Do imported toys need a label?
Toys are on the list of goods that cannot be imported without a trade description in English stating a true description and the country where they were made or produced.
Does a toy labelled 3+ escape the Australian infant toy standard?
Not always. The ACCC says the standard for toys for children up to 36 months can apply even if a toy is labelled for older children, where it is commonly recognised as suitable for that age.
Do toys sold in Australia need third-party certification?
The ACCC says suppliers should organise testing through specialist testing laboratories to show a toy meets the mandatory standard. It does not describe a third-party certification scheme for toys.
How does Compliant Always help with selling in Australia?
Our team reads the rules for the markets you sell in, including the Commonwealth, state and territory layers in Australia. Compliant Always shows which apply to your product and keeps the documents behind each one ready. It shows what the requirements say and what your documents show; you decide.

Sources

Compliant Always is a product of Lettuce Labs LLC. It shows what requirements say and what your documents show. It is not legal advice, and you decide.

Tell us what you make, and we will show you the rules for it.

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