US Fur Products Labeling — 16 CFR Part 301
- Citation
- 16 CFR Part 301
- Jurisdiction
- US
- Made by
- Federal Trade Commission
- Instrument
- Regulation
- Status
- In force
What it requires (4 obligations)
Every fur product, except those exempted under § 301.39, must be labelled AND invoiced in conformity with the Act and these rules. Every fur, except those exempted, must be invoiced in conformity with them. Any advertising of fur products or furs, except those exempted, must also conform.
No date set Confirmed In force, dates fixed in published law
- Who it falls on
- Manufacturers, importers and sellers
- Products
- Apparel, clothing accessories, textiles
- Markets
- US
Three distinct duties, and the invoice one has no equivalent in the wool or textile-fibre regimes this register already holds. A fur or fur product moving business-to-business, with no consumer label anywhere in the transaction, is still inside this Part through the invoicing duty. Advertising is named separately again. All three duties are subject to the exemptions at § 301.39, which is not recorded here.
Quoted from 16 CFR § 301.2(a), (b) and (c), eCFR snapshot 2026-08-01.
The animal name used in labelling, invoicing and advertising must be the applicable name from the "Name" column of the Fur Products Name Guide at § 301.0. The scientific names in the Order, Family and Genus-Species columns are furnished for animal identification only and must not be used. Where a Name Guide entry consists of two separate words, the second word must precede the first — "Fox, Black" is disclosed as "Black Fox".
No date set Confirmed In force, dates fixed in published law
- Who it falls on
- Manufacturers, importers and sellers
- Products
- Apparel, clothing accessories, textiles
- Markets
- US
The name is prescribed rather than chosen, and the word-order rule is the trap: the Guide is printed in an index order that must be reversed on the label. A supplier transcribing the entry as printed produces a non-conforming description while appearing to have copied the official source exactly.
Quoted from § 301.5(a) and (b).
No trade name, coined name, or other name or word describing a fur as being the fur of an animal that is in fact fictitious or non-existent may be used in labelling, invoicing or advertising of a fur or fur product.
No date set Confirmed In force, dates fixed in published law
- Who it falls on
- Manufacturers, importers and sellers
- Products
- Apparel, clothing accessories, textiles
- Markets
- US
Aimed at invented species names used as marketing — the prohibition reaches trade names and coined names, not merely false claims about a real animal. It applies across all three surfaces: label, invoice and advertising.
Quoted from § 301.11.
For furs imported into the United States, the country of origin must be set out as part of the required information in invoicing and advertising. For fur products imported, or made from imported furs, the country of origin of the furs must be set out in labelling, invoicing and advertising. The country of origin is the country in which the animal producing the fur was raised or, if in a feral state, was taken. Colonies, possessions and protectorates outside the boundaries of the mother country count as separate countries.
No date set Confirmed In force, dates fixed in published law
- Who it falls on
- Manufacturers, importers and sellers
- Products
- Apparel, clothing accessories, textiles
- Markets
- US
Origin is WHERE THE ANIMAL LIVED, not where the pelt was dressed, dyed or made up — which is the answer most supply chains have to hand and is the wrong one. Note also that the disclosure surfaces differ: a raw fur discloses on invoice and advertising, while a fur PRODUCT discloses on the label as well.
Quoted from § 301.12(a)(1), (a)(2), (b) and (c).
This is a register, not advice. It records what an instrument says and when it applies. Whether it applies to a particular company, product or shipment is a question for somebody who knows that business, and the answer is frequently not what the summary above would suggest.
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