Compliance guide: audits, certifications and import rules for Bangladeshi clothing

What does “compliant” mean in apparel sourcing?

Buyers use the word for three different things, and mixing them up is how gaps appear. Factory compliance is about how the factory operates: building safety, fire and electrical safety, wages, hours, freedom of association and environmental management. Product compliance is about the garment: restricted chemicals, flammability for children’s wear, fibre content and care labelling, and any claim such as “organic”. Market compliance is about the law where you sell: customs, forced-labour rules, due-diligence duties and labelling.

A certificate in one layer says nothing about the others. A factory with a clean social audit can still ship a garment that fails a chemical limit, and a garment passing every test can come from a facility with an expired fire-safety status.

Which factory audits and programmes matter in Bangladesh?

Building and fire safety is the first filter. After the Rana Plaza collapse on 24 April 2013, which killed 1,134 people (International Labour Organization), brands signed binding safety agreements. Today the RMG Sustainability Council (RSC) continues that inspection and remediation work in Bangladesh for the factories it covers. Social and ethical audits then sit on top.

Always verify a certificate with the issuing body rather than trusting a PDF, and note the expiry. An audit report is a snapshot: ask when it was carried out and what has been fixed since.

Which product certifications and standards matter?

• OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100. Tests textile articles for harmful substances, in four product classes from baby articles to decoration materials.
• GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard). Covers the whole supply chain for organic fibre. A product labelled “organic” must contain at least 95% certified organic fibres; “made with organic” requires at least 70%.
• GRS and RCS (Global Recycled Standard, Recycled Claim Standard). Verify recycled content and chain of custody.
• Better Cotton. A sourcing programme working on a mass-balance system, so it does not mean the garment physically contains Better Cotton.
• ZDHC. Chemical-management guidelines for mills and wash plants, including restricted-substance lists for wastewater and process chemicals.

Transaction certificates matter as much as facility certificates. For a GOTS or GRS claim, ask for the transaction certificate covering your shipment, not only the factory’s annual certificate. Use the compliance checklist to see which documents your market expects.

What import rules apply in the EU, US and Japan?

The common thread is traceability. Whichever market you serve, you need to know which mill spun the yarn and where the cotton came from. See EU forced labour regulation for apparel importers for the detail on the newest of these rules.

What should you ask a factory for before placing an order?

1. Current fire, electrical and structural safety status, and any open corrective actions.
2. Latest social audit reports with dates, and the corrective-action plan.
3. Certificates relevant to your claims, each with number, issuer and expiry date.
4. A restricted-substances commitment and recent lab reports for similar fabric.
5. Fabric and yarn origin for your styles, to the mill level where possible.
6. Subcontracting policy: whether any process (print, embroidery, wash) leaves the building, and where it goes.
7. The factory’s wage and overtime records policy, and how workers can raise grievances.

A reputable buying house collects and checks these before a factory is quoted to you, and a third-party inspection at the end confirms the product, not the paperwork. How the quality side works is in AQL final inspection explained.