FTC Textile Labeling for Amazon Clothing Sellers: Fiber Content, Country of Origin, RN Numbers, and What Your Listing Must Say

Amazon clothing label requirements in the US start with federal law, not with Amazon. Under the FTC’s rules for the Textile and Wool Acts, a garment label has to show three things: the fiber content, the country of origin, and either the company name or the company’s Registered Identification Number (RN). A separate FTC rule adds a care label with washing or drycleaning instructions, and when you sell online, the product description itself needs a clear statement that the item is “made in U.S.A.,” “imported,” or both.

This guide walks through each item as the FTC’s business guidance describes it (FTC pages read on 2026-10-07). It covers US labeling law only. Poly bag and suffocation-warning prep for FBA lives in Amazon FBA prep requirements, and the EU’s textile EPR is a different regime covered in Amazon EPR compliance in the EU.

Who the FTC Textile Labeling Rules Cover

The FTC’s guide Threading Your Way Through the Labeling Requirements Under the Textile and Wool Acts states the scope plainly: “If you manufacture, import, sell, offer to sell, distribute or advertise products covered by the Textile and Wool Acts, you must comply with the labeling requirements.” A seller importing private-label hoodies and one reselling wholesale leggings both fall inside that sentence.

The same page lists products that are outside the Textile Act, including shoes and other outer footwear, and headwear such as hats and caps. Structural linings, interlinings and padding are also excluded. Carriers that only ship the goods and publishers that only run the ads are not treated as covered parties.

If you are still deciding whether apparel is a category you want to enter at all, what you can sell on Amazon as a new seller covers category gating before you get to labeling.

The Three Things Every Garment Label Must Show

The FTC page sums the core requirement up in one sentence: “Textile labels must identify fiber content, country of origin and either the company name or the Registered Identification Number (RN).” Here is how each element breaks down, with the rule as the FTC describes it (data checked 2026-10-07):

Two placement rules come with these three items. First, “When a garment has a neck, you must attach a label that discloses the country of origin on its front to the inside center of the neck.” Second, labels “must be securely attached to the product until it is delivered to the consumer.” For other textile products, the information must sit on a conspicuous, readily accessible label on the inside or outside. Disclosures must be in English; other languages can be added as long as the English version is there.

Fiber Content: Generic Names, Percentages, and the 5% Rule

Fiber content is where most private-label apparel gets the wording wrong, usually because a factory supplied the text and nobody checked it against the FTC rules. The guidance sets five working rules:

1. Generic names only. “Both natural and man-made fibers must be identified by their generic names.” That means “polyester” or “spandex,” not a brand trademark on its own.
2. Percentages by weight, biggest first. “The generic fiber names and percentages by weight of each constituent fiber must be listed in descending order of predominance.”
3. The 5% rule. “In general, you may name only the fibers that comprise 5% or more of the fiber weight.” Fibers below that line are disclosed as “other fiber” or “other fibers.”
4. The wool exception. “You must disclose wool or recycled wool by name and percentage weight, even if it is less than 5%.”
5. A 3% tolerance. “There is a 3% tolerance for fiber content claims on labels.” A label that says 60% cotton should not be a garment that tests far outside that band.

Premium cotton names get their own warning in the FTC text: if your copy says “Pima” or “Egyptian,” make sure it doesn’t convey that the product is made only of the premium cotton unless that is true. Fiber trademarks follow the same logic; a trademark can’t be used to imply a fiber that isn’t present.

Get the fiber breakdown in writing from your supplier, ideally with a lab test for the first run, and keep the sewn-in label, hangtag and listing consistent.

Country of Origin: “Imported” Versus “Made in U.S.A.”

For goods made abroad, the rule is short: “Imported products must identify the country where the products were processed or manufactured.” Most Amazon private-label apparel is cut and sewn overseas, so the label names that country, for example “Made in Bangladesh.”

Goods finished in the US from foreign materials need more care. The FTC says such products “must be labeled to show the processing or manufacturing that takes place in the U.S., as well as the imported component,” with examples like “Made in U.S.A. of imported fabric” or “Knitted in U.S.A. of imported yarn.” That disclosure “must appear as a single statement,” so you cannot print “Made in U.S.A.” on one label and bury “imported fabric” somewhere else.

Country of origin also matters at the border. The same country you print on the label is the one your customs entry declares, and it drives the duty you pay; see Amazon FBA import tariffs for how origin feeds into tariff costs.

Who Made or Imported It: What an RN Number Is and How to Get One

The third label element identifies a responsible business. The FTC’s RN FAQ defines it this way: “RN stands for Registered Identification Number. It is a number issued by the FTC to U.S. businesses that manufacture, import, distribute, or sell products covered by the Textile, Wool, and Fur Acts.” Key facts from that FAQ and the Threading guide, data checked 2026-10-07:

For an Amazon seller, the RN mainly lets a factory abroad print your identifier instead of its own name, without your full company name on every tag. The FTC FAQ also says imported goods can carry the name of the foreign manufacturer or the exporter that markets them in the US, so a non-US seller without an RN still has a compliant route: the business name.

Before you order labels, search the FTC’s RN database to confirm the number you plan to use is registered to your company and shows current details. If you work through a China sourcing agent, send the agent the exact label text, including the RN, rather than letting the factory fill it in.

Care Labels: A Separate FTC Rule

Care instructions are not part of the Textile Act label. The Threading guide points elsewhere: “Care labels for clothing are required by another rule enforced by the FTC.” That is the Care Labeling Rule, which the FTC explains in its guide Clothes Captioning: Complying with the Care Labeling Rule (page dated May 2014, read 2026-10-07).

What that guide says, in short:

• Who is responsible. Manufacturers and importers of textile wearing apparel, plus anyone who directs or controls the manufacturing or importing.
• What the label says. Labels must “provide complete instructions about regular care for the garment,” or warn if the garment cannot be cleaned without harm. “Labels for clothing must have a washing or drycleaning instruction.”
• Evidence. “You must have a reasonable basis for all care instructions and warnings,” meaning reliable evidence that the instruction works for that garment.
• Permanence. “Labels must be attached permanently and securely” and stay legible for the useful life of the product.
• Visibility. “Attach labels so consumers can easily see or find them at the point of sale.”
• Symbols. The rule allows ASTM care symbols in place of words.

The guide exempts some items, including shoes, gloves and hats, and excludes accessories such as handkerchiefs, belts, suspenders and neckties. Treat the FTC page itself as the reference for the full list before you skip a care label on an accessory.

What Your Amazon Listing Must Say About Origin

The online part of the rule is short and easy to miss. The Threading guide says: “When a textile or wool product is advertised in a catalog or other mail order promotional material, including on an internet site, the description must include a clear and conspicuous statement that the item was either ‘made in U.S.A.,’ ‘imported’ or ‘made in U.S.A. and [or] imported.’”

An Amazon product detail page is an internet description, so an origin statement belongs on it, for example a bullet or description line reading “Imported” or “Made in U.S.A. of imported fabric.”

Fiber content works differently online. The FTC text says: “If a written ad for a textile product makes any statement about a fiber, or implies the presence of a fiber, the fiber content information that’s required on the label must appear in the ad, minus the percentages.” In practice, almost every apparel listing mentions a fiber (“soft cotton blend”), which pulls in the fiber names. If you use a fiber trademark in the copy, the FTC adds that the fiber content must be disclosed at least once in the ad.

Amazon also publishes its own apparel listing and compliance requirements in Seller Central. Those help pages sit behind a login and could not be read for this guide, so check them in your account; the Manage Your Compliance dashboard is where Amazon surfaces document requests for your listings.

Penalties and What Happens When Labels Are Wrong

The Threading guide states: “Violators of an administrative order are subject to monetary civil penalties of up to $53,088 per violation” (amount read on the FTC page on 2026-10-07; the FTC adjusts civil penalty amounts for inflation, so check the page for the current figure). Note the context: that figure applies to violating an FTC administrative order.

For an Amazon seller, the commercial consequences tend to arrive first. Relabeling inventory already in a fulfillment center means removal orders, rework and re-inbound fees, and a listing that claims “100% cotton” for a blended garment invites returns and complaints. Retailers who replace original labels also inherit a record-keeping duty: the FTC says they must keep records for three years showing what the removed label said. If a labeling problem overlaps with a safety issue, how Amazon product recalls work for sellers covers that separate process.

Pre-Launch Labeling Checklist for Amazon Apparel

Run this before you approve a production sample:

1. Fiber line uses generic names, percentages by weight, descending order, with “other fiber” for anything under 5% (wool always named).
2. Origin line names the country of manufacture; US-finished goods use a single combined statement.
3. Neck label on garments with a neck shows origin on the front, inside center.
4. Identity is your company name or your RN, confirmed in the FTC RN database.
5. Care label has a washing or drycleaning instruction you can back with evidence, attached permanently.
6. English appears on every required disclosure.
7. Listing carries the “Imported” or “Made in U.S.A.” statement and fiber names that match the sewn-in label.
8. Records of supplier fiber specs and test reports kept with the order file.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need an RN number to sell clothing on Amazon?

Not under FTC rules. The FTC says an RN is not required to do business in the US, and a company name can go on the label instead. An RN is free and only available to US-based businesses.

Can my Chinese factory put my RN on the label?

Yes. The label can carry the RN or name of the US business marketing the goods, such as the importer or retailer, so a factory can print your RN on your behalf.

Does my Amazon listing need fiber percentages?

The FTC guidance says that when an ad mentions or implies a fiber, the label’s fiber content information must appear in the ad “minus the percentages.” The origin statement (“imported” or “made in U.S.A.”) is required in internet descriptions.

Are hats and shoes covered by the textile labeling rules?

The FTC’s Textile Act guidance lists shoes and other outer footwear and headwear such as hats and caps as not covered, and the Care Labeling Rule guide exempts shoes, gloves and hats.