The Toy Association™ is informing members of two recent regulatory developments, including the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC) final rule addressing water beads in toys and the European Union’s newly published Toy Safety Regulation, that introduce new requirements and timelines for future compliance.

U.S. CPSC Publishes Final Rule on Water Beads in Toys
CPSC published its final rule on Safety Standard for Toys: Requirements for Water Beads in the Federal Register on December 12, 2025. The rule will take effect on March 12, 2026, 90 days after the publication date.

The final rule revises elements of the 2024 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and was approved in August by the then-two-member Commission. As previously reported, the rule applies broadly to ‘water bead toys’ as well as ‘toys that contain water beads’, which includes toys with internal water bead components that are not intended to be accessed, such as enclosed squeeze or squishy balls.

Key elements of the final rule include:

• A new definition of “water bead” that is not limited to spherical shapes
• A maximum hydrated water bead diameter of 5 mm
• Withdrawal of the previously proposed 50 percent maximum expansion rate
• Revised warning requirements, including adjustments to some previously proposed alarmist language
• A new acrylamide testing requirement, with an extraction threshold of 325 μg

The rule applies only to toys as defined under ASTM F963 and does not extend to other applications of water beads or expanding material technologies, such as florist and plant supplies; craft materials; or health, medical, or beauty products.

The water bead requirement will be applied directly into 16 CFR 1250, instead of through an update to ASTM F963, which has been the standard process for changes to the toy regulation as directed in the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008.

European Union Publishes New Toy Safety Regulation
The European Commission published the Toy Safety Regulation 2025/2509 EU in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) on December 12, 2025.

The regulation will apply 54 months after publication, with an effective date (“application date”) of August 1, 2030. Until that time, toys that comply with the existing Toy Safety Directive (TSD) may continue to be placed on the EU market. Importantly, toys that enter the market before the application date may remain in circulation within the EU after August 2030.

Key changes introduced by the Toy Safety Regulation include:

• Transitioning from a traditional Declaration of Conformity (DoC) to a Digital Product Passport (DPP), with detailed requirements to be established through future delegated acts
• Expanded safety assessment requirements covering chemical, physical, mechanical, electrical, flammability, hygiene, and radioactivity hazards; digitally connected toys must also assess potential mental health impacts
• Broader chemical restrictions, extending beyond existing Carcinogenic, Mutagenic & Reprotoxic (CMR) classifications to include endocrine disruptors, skin sensitizers, respiratory toxicants, and certain biocides
• New prohibitions on PFAS, specific bisphenols, and additional restrictions on allergenic fragrances, nitrosamines, and other substances of concern
• Expansion of certain chemical migration limits to apply to all age groups, along with new limits for substances such as styrene, acrylonitrile, butadiene, and vinyl chloride

Now that the regulation has been published, the supporting standards that provide presumption of conformity, such as the EN71 series of toy safety standards, will need to be reviewed, revised, and republished ahead of the application date to incorporate and ensure alignment with the new regulation.

The Toy Association is currently conducting a comprehensive review of the regulation and will provide members with a more detailed analysis in the coming weeks. Members will also continue to receive updates as delegated acts related to the Digital Product Passport and revisions to the EN 71 standards progress.

Members may reach out to The Toy Association’s Jos Huxley, senior vice president of technical affairs, with any questions.