OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100 in Pakistan: The Route to Certification

What STANDARD 100 certifies, and what it does not

STANDARD 100 is a label for textiles tested for harmful substances, from yarn to finished product. Every thread, button and accessory is tested against a list of over 1,000 harmful substances, and OEKO-TEX reviews its limit values at least once a year (OEKO-TEX).

The criteria cover legally banned substances such as azo colourants, pentachlorophenol, PFAS, cadmium and lead, substances not yet regulated, and requirements from REACH Annexes XIV and XVII, the US CPSIA (lead) and the EU POPs regulation (OEKO-TEX factsheet). The factsheet notes that STANDARD 100 criteria are often the basis of retailers' restricted substances lists, which is why buyers ask for it.

The standard says plainly that the mark is not a quality label. It relates only to the article as produced, and says nothing about fitness for use, behaviour in cleaning or other physical properties (STANDARD 100, Edition 01.2026). It also declares nothing about product safety, textile labelling or construction such as drawstrings; meeting those legal requirements stays with the applicant. Colour fastness to washing, shrinkage and strength still need their own tests.

Two test programmes exist. Annex 4 holds the requirements that protect consumer health; Annex 6 adds chemicals that matter in production for the environment. The applicant chooses one when applying.

The four product classes

The limits depend on how the article is used: the more intensive the skin contact, the stricter the requirements. The class follows the article's intended use.

Class 1 has the strictest requirements and limit values (OEKO-TEX; classes as defined in STANDARD 100).

The route to certification, step by step

• Register. Register for STANDARD 100 at oeko-tex.com to get access to the OEKO-TEX Connect platform (factsheet).

• Apply to an institute. Send the application to an OEKO-TEX institute of your choice, with representative production samples in sufficient quantity for testing and records, and choose Annex 4 or Annex 6.

• Verification and test plan. The institute checks the application and samples, then sets the tests for the product, its materials and its product class.

• Laboratory tests. The institute tests the samples against the limits for that class.

• Report and Declaration of Conformity. The institute sends the test report. If the tests pass, the applicant signs the Declaration of Conformity and sends it to the institute, accepting that certified products will be monitored by OEKO-TEX and the institute.

• Certificate. Once all documents are in, the institute issues the certificate, valid for one year.

• On-site visit. A first certification needs an on-site visit to the company, before or soon after certification, and it must be passed. A company holding an OEKO-TEX STeP certificate does not need it.

After that, each company gets an on-site visit at least once every three years, and OEKO-TEX may also make unannounced visits at any time, at the facility's cost (STANDARD 100, Edition 01.2026).

Where to apply from Pakistan

The OEKO-TEX offices page lists the member institutes and their offices worldwide. Checked on 3 Nov 2026, it showed one office in Pakistan: AITEX Pakistan, Gulberg V, Lahore, for textiles and leather. The standard lets the applicant choose any OEKO-TEX institute, so a Pakistani company can also apply to an institute's office abroad. Check the current list before applying, because offices open and close.

For Pakistan, which exported US$17,887.0 million of textiles in FY2024-25 (Towel Manufacturers' Association of Pakistan, from Pakistan Bureau of Statistics data), the practical question is less where to apply than which parts of the supply chain need their own certificates.

Certified components and the 2027 supply chain rules

OEKO-TEX runs a modular system: when every component of the finished product already holds a STANDARD 100 certificate, the testing costs for the finished product are waived (OEKO-TEX). Certified yarn, fabric, thread and trims can be found in the OEKO-TEX Buying Guide.

Edition 01.2026 tightens two rules for renewals (STANDARD 100):

• Wet processing. To renew, every company in the product's supply chain that carries out wet or chemical processing must hold a valid STANDARD 100 certificate covering that product. Uncertified wet processes stay acceptable until Jun 2027.

• Upstream certificates. A certificate from a second-tier supplier is accepted only for a first certification. For renewals, the upstream certificate must come from the direct supplier; second-tier certificates are accepted for renewals until Jun 2027.

For a garment maker that sends fabric out to a commission dyer or printer, this means the dyer or printer needs its own certificate before the Jun 2027 deadline, or the garment certificate cannot be renewed.

What OEKO-TEX tests, and what can be pre-tested locally

OEKO-TEX publishes the methods its laboratories use (Testing methods STANDARD 100, Edition 01.2026). The table maps the main ones to the methods on the Tti Labs ISO/IEC 17025 scope, PNAC LAB-022.

Where the method differs, a local result is a screen, not the same test. No pre-test result replaces the institute's tests or leads to a certificate. Its value is time: a failure found before the samples are sent costs one corrective lot, not a failed application. The REACH testing guide covers the azo, formaldehyde and nickel limits that EU law sets on their own.

What to pre-test before applying

• Each dye recipe and each finish going on the certified article, since the samples must represent production

• Prints and coatings, for phthalates and, on water-repellent finishes, PFAS

• Metal trims such as buttons, rivets, snaps and zips, for nickel and heavy metals

• Every component of a Class 1 article, including thread, labels and elastics

• Any component without its own STANDARD 100 certificate, since the finished product's testing costs are waived only when every component is already certified

Ask the institute which tests its plan will include for the product and class, then pre-test the riskiest components against the published limits. The limit values for each substance are in the OEKO-TEX limit value table, and any value measured in the laboratory must be below the limit to obtain the certificate.

Renewal and keeping the certificate

• Renewal can be requested three months before expiry, and should be seamless with the expiry date. The certificate number stays the same.

• A renewed certificate expires exactly one year after the previous expiry date; a late renewal does not extend validity.

• The institute normally sets a reduced testing programme for the 1st, 2nd, 4th and 5th renewals, provided materials, chemicals and manufacturing are unchanged.

• The standard is normally updated in Mar, and new or stricter requirements normally apply from the following 1 Jun.

A change of dyestuff, finishing chemical or fabric supplier changes the materials or chemicals used, so pre-test the new input before it goes into certified production. A certified product also loses the right to be called certified as soon as it is professionally treated afterwards, physically or chemically, including washing and chemical cleaning, so a garment washed after the fabric was certified can no longer carry the fabric's certification (STANDARD 100).

Checking a label or a supplier's certificate

Anyone can check a STANDARD 100 label by scanning its QR code or entering the certificate number in the OEKO-TEX Label Check. Check that the certificate is valid, that it covers the article being bought, and which product class it was issued for. The EU EmpCo Directive took effect on 27 Sep 2026, and OEKO-TEX states that its labels can continue to be used without restriction (OEKO-TEX FAQ).

How Tti Labs fits

Tti Labs is not listed as an OEKO-TEX institute and does not issue OEKO-TEX, GOTS or other scheme certificates (which certificates Pakistani exporters need). Its chemical methods are aligned with OEKO-TEX criteria and accredited under PNAC LAB-022, valid until 8 Aug 2027 (Tti Labs chemical testing). Pre-test reports show where an article stands against the published limits before the application goes in.

Each test and its charge are confirmed in writing, with the turnaround, before any work starts (Tti Labs testing). The lab testing guide covers how to plan the rest of the test programme for an export order.

Ask Tti Labs for an OEKO-TEX pre-test