Selling children's clothing online: drawstrings, sleepwear and tracking labels

Call a soft cotton two-piece "pyjamas" and it falls under the children's sleepwear flammability rules. Call it a "lounge set" and promote it for daytime, and it may not. In children's clothing, a single word in the title, or a single image of a child asleep, can change which rules apply. So can a drawstring on a hood.

This page covers drawstrings, sleepwear, the papers every children's garment needs, and what Walmart, Etsy, Amazon and Canada add.

What this page covers: clothing and shoes for children 12 and under, sleepwear, hoodies and outerwear, and baby clothing.

The short version

• Hood and neck drawstrings on children's upper outerwear in sizes 2T to 12 are a substantial product hazard.
• Calling a garment sleepwear, or promoting it for sleep, brings in the sleepwear flammability rules.
• Clothing for children 12 and under is a children's product: lead limits, third-party testing, a Children's Product Certificate and tracking labels.
• Etsy prohibits upper-body outerwear with drawstrings for ages 14 and under.
• Walmart prohibits pre-owned children's sleepwear and asks for tracking labels.

Are drawstrings allowed on children's clothing?

Not at the hood or neck. US rules treat hood and neck drawstrings in children's upper outerwear, sizes 2T to 12, as a substantial product hazard. Waist and bottom drawstrings are allowed within length limits. Etsy is stricter: it prohibits upper-body outerwear with drawstrings for ages 14 and under.

If your hoodie has a cord, the listing should show the hood clearly, so a buyer and a marketplace reviewer can see there is no drawstring at the neck.

When does children's clothing count as sleepwear?

Children's clothing counts as sleepwear when it is made as sleepwear or promoted for sleep, in words or images. The children's sleepwear rules apply to garments that are sleepwear, and how a garment is promoted is part of that test. In practice:

• Words. "Pyjamas", "PJs", "nightgown", "sleepwear" or "for bedtime" in the title or bullets promote a garment for sleep.
• Images. A child shown asleep or in bed in the garment promotes it for sleep too.

If your garment meets the sleepwear rules, say so with confidence. If it does not, keep sleep out of the words and the images. Walmart requires new children's sleepwear to meet 16 CFR 1615 and prohibits pre-owned children's sleepwear. Canada has separate children's sleepwear flammability regulations.

What documents does children's clothing need?

Clothing for children 12 and under is a children's product under US law, which means lead limits, third-party testing, a Children's Product Certificate and tracking labels. Whether a garment counts as a children's product depends partly on how it is advertised, so a teen-sized shirt shown on a young child can bring it in.

• Walmart asks for tracking labels on apparel for ages 12 and under.
• Amazon treats children's apparel as a restricted category with CPSIA documents.

How should children's clothing be photographed?

Photograph children's clothing off a model, laid flat or on a form, as seller guides that quote Amazon's image rules say. That also keeps the sleepwear question out of your images.

What every children's garment listing should show:

• A flat-lay of the front and back, with the hood and any cords visible.
• A close photo of the care and fibre label.
• A size chart image with the measurements for each size.

What do Walmart, Etsy and Amazon add for children's clothing?

Walmart, Etsy and Amazon each add rules for children's clothing:

What rules apply to children's sleepwear in Canada?

Children's sleepwear sold in Canada must meet the Children's Sleepwear Regulations, which set flammability requirements.

How Commicorn helps

• Your garment, as photographed. On the Untouched product route your photo's pixels are never redrawn, so the label, the hood and every seam stay exactly as they are.
• A size chart from your sizes. The Size chart image lays out the measurements you give us for each size.
• You check the scenes. For Amazon, use flat or off-model images for kids' clothing, and look at any scene with a child before you export.

Questions sellers ask

Can I sell a child's hoodie with a drawstring?

Not with a hood or neck drawstring in sizes 2T to 12, which US rules treat as a substantial product hazard; waist and bottom drawstrings are allowed within length limits. Etsy prohibits upper-body outerwear with drawstrings for ages 14 and under.

Does calling a garment "pyjamas" make it children's sleepwear?

Yes. Words such as "pyjamas", "PJs" or "for bedtime" promote a garment for sleep, which brings in the children's sleepwear flammability rules.

Does children's clothing need a Children's Product Certificate?

Yes, for children 12 and under, along with lead limits, third-party testing and tracking labels.

Can I sell used children's pyjamas on Walmart?

No. Walmart prohibits pre-owned children's sleepwear, and new children's sleepwear must meet 16 CFR 1615.

Should children's clothing be shown on a child model?

Seller guides that quote Amazon's image rules say kids' clothing is photographed off a model, laid flat or on a form. A child shown asleep or in bed in a garment also promotes it for sleep.

Before you list

Have the Children's Product Certificate, the third-party test report, the tracking labels and a flat-lay that shows the hood and any cords ready before the listing goes live. On a borderline garment, two questions settle it: whether there is a drawstring at the hood or neck, which 16 CFR 1120.3 treats as a hazard in sizes 2T to 12 and Etsy bars for ages 14 and under, and whether the words or images promote it for sleep, which brings in 16 CFR 1615. In Canada, the Children's Sleepwear Regulations decide the sleepwear question.