Suspension of Orders to the EU and Northern Ireland from 31st July
An Update for Our Valued Customers in Northern Ireland and the European Union
To our valued customers in Northern Ireland and across Europe,
Further to Amanda's post on this subject, this is to confirm that due to a series of sweeping and highly complex regulatory changes governing imports, chemical safety, and packaging across the EU single market zone (which includes Northern Ireland under current trade frameworks), we have had to make the painful decision to suspend all sales and direct shipping to addresses In Europe as a whole, This also includes Norway and Switzerland as although they are not part of the EU they follow the same regulations.
As a small business creating aura sprays by hand, in small batches, here in the UK, we pride ourselves on blending the highest quality essential oils and crystal essences to produce, what we truly believe to be the best aura sprays on the market today. However, the administrative framework and financial costs required to legally send a single bottle of spray over the Irish Sea or into Europe have escalated to a point where a business of our size can no longer absorb them.
To be completely transparent, here is a summary of the legal hurdles we are now required to clear to sell even one spray to a customer in the EU or Northern Ireland:
1. Complex New Customs & Tax Barriers (IOSS & DDP)
To ship seamlessly to consumers without you facing unexpected import fees at your doorstep, we are required to register for the EU's Import One Stop Shop (IOSS). Because our business is based in Great Britain, we cannot simply register online; we are legally required to appoint a third-party corporate "Intermediary" based inside the EU to manage our monthly tax filings. Registering carries upfront fees of up to £400, followed by recurring monthly filing costs averaging £100 to £250 every single month—regardless of whether we sell fifty bottles or zero. Combined with courier surcharges for Delivered Duties Paid (DDP) shipping, the baseline transport cost would dwarf the price of the spray itself.
2. Tightened Product Safety Laws (GPSR & The Poison Centre Portal)
The EU's General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) mandates that any product entering the region must have an officially appointed, legally liable "Responsible Person" (RP) physically living or operating inside the EU or Northern Ireland. This person's full name and address must be printed on every single spray. We did actually appoint one last year as we struggled to implement the regulations introduced under GPSR.
Although we have done about 90% of the work required to comply with GPSR, there are a few more hurdles remaining. Because our sprays contain natural essential oils, they are legally classified as chemical mixtures. To comply, we must:
- Hire professional chemists to compile a comprehensive 16-section Safety Data Sheet (SDS) specifically for every single individual spray variation we create.
- Build an intricate technical compliance file for each blend/spray.
- Formally register our exact formulas with the EU Poison Centres Portal to generate a unique 16-digit tracking code (called a UFI) to print on our labels for emergency medical tracking in case someone should drink them.
We have fallen at this final hurdle. The cost of compiling 60 SDS at around £100 each is prohibitive. Every time we create a new spray or even change an ingredient, even the supplier of an oil, we would have to produce a new one.
To prepare a technical file for each of our 60 formulas and register them with the Poison Centres Portal in order to obtain the UFI is another exorbitant cost. Not to mention all the extra work involved printing 60 different UFI numbers on labels and making sure they are attached to the relevant spray box, along with inserting the safety leaflet we were also required to have produced last year, in 15 EU languages.
3. New Packaging Restrictions (PPWR)
Finally, strict environmental rules under the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) dictate exactly how packaging materials must be assessed. We are now required to submit our product packaging to rigorous material audits, certify that they meet highly specific EU recyclability criteria, and pay into international waste management registries in each EU country, just to account for the cardboard boxes, glass bottles and plastic components we use. Our packaging also needs to be labelled in line with each EU country’s recycling regulations, at least 3 different pictograms are in use. There is a cost to register in each EU country and ongoing fees to each. We have to obtain certificates of conformity for each material we use, the glass, the atomiser and the cardboard packaging as well.
The Bottom Line
When we added up the setup fees, professional safety testing, and ongoing legal representation, the cost to establish and maintain compliance sits at several thousand pounds. For a small business these regulations create a border that is structurally impossible for us to cross.
Please know that we did not make this decision lightly. We are incredibly grateful for the support, kind reviews, and repeat orders we have received from our customers in Northern Ireland and Europe over the years. We will continue to monitor the landscape closely, and if simplified routes for micro-businesses open up in the future, we will be the very first in line to sign up.
As Amanda said in her post, we will keep EU orders open until 31st July to give you an opportunity to stock up on your sprays. Unfortunately orders to Germany, France, Luxembourg, Denmark and Ireland are immediately suspended due to circumstances beyond our control. Northern Ireland can also order up until the 31st July. We know how disappointing this is and we are as upset as you are about it.
Of course you can still follow Amanda’s work via her YouTube videos and Memberships and her regular presence on social media. We will be offering more digital products in the future too, webinars and meditations immediately come to mind so look out for those.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your understanding, your loyalty, and your support.
With love from all at ACC
Tracy xx