If you export products to North Macedonia, this article is for you. It will help you better understand the obligations that apply to chemical, but also to all other products placed on the market of North Macedonia.
The key point when placing a product on the market is correct labelling. For some products, such as chemicals, cosmetics, or foodstuffs, specific rules apply. However, for all types of products, there are general rules on labelling in accordance with consumer protection regulations.
How is product labelling regulated in North Macedonia?
The Consumer Protection Act of North Macedonia (“Official Gazette of RSM”, 236/22, 3/25 and 49/25) introduced the obligation of bilingual labels for all products placed on the market of North Macedonia.
Article 6 (1) prescribes the obligation to label products as a way of providing product information to the consumer.
Furthermore, Article 6 (2) stipulates that the trader must provide product information in written form in Macedonian language and its Cyrillic script, as well as in the language spoken by at least 20% of the citizens in the territory of the Republic of North Macedonia and in its script.
In addition, Article 37 of the same law imposes the same bilingualism requirement for technical documentation delivered to the consumer.
The use of the second language is consistent with the Law on the Use of Languages (2019), which defines Albanian as the language spoken by at least 20% of the population.
What does this mean for producers and distributors of chemical products?
If you distribute chemicals, this obligation applies both to labels and to safety data sheets.
Do not be misled by the fact that the Chemicals Act of North Macedonia (“Official Gazette of RSM”, 145/10, 53/11, 164/13, 116/15, 149/15, 37/16 and 236/22) does not prescribe such an obligation. It requires chemical labelling in Macedonian and in Cyrillic script (Article 18). The same applies to the safety data sheet (Article 37).
However, the Consumer Protection Act, as a general law, also applies to chemical products regardless of the specific rules that apply to them.
What are the consequences of non-compliance?
The Consumer Protection Act came into force on 15 November 2022, and its provisions have since been mandatory for all products placed on the market.
It prescribes fines for traders who fail to provide declarations or technical documents in both official languages.
The fines range from a minimum of EUR 1,000 for small traders to a maximum of EUR 10,000 for large traders, with additional penalties for responsible persons. Violators may also face a ban on conducting business for 15 to 30 days.
How can we help you?
Although the rules on bilingual labels were adopted in 2022, they are still the subject of political and public debate. Nevertheless, the legal obligation remains – product information must be provided in both official languages.
We know this can be a demanding process, especially if you do not closely monitor the rules applicable in North Macedonia. That is why we do this for you: we monitor the regulations and update our system so that the documentation we prepare is always compliant.
So, if you plan to place products on the North Macedonian market, we can help. We can prepare safety data sheets and labels for the North Macedonian market in Macedonian and Albanian.
Your only task is to make room for the additional language on the label. And don’t forget: when designing multilingual labels, you must comply with existing rules.
If you are not sure whether your labels comply with the regulations, I may be able to help. Write to me at nina.pajovic@bens-consulting.eu.
Image by jorono from pixabay.com
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