How to Upload Licenses to the GRS System

Any new GRS customer enrolling in a Monitored Service will need to upload their licenses to their GRS account. Uploaded licenses are placed in a queue which the GRS team reviews multiple times a day during business hours.

When we have reviewed a license, it is either approved or rejected. In this guide we explore what our team looks for to determine license approval or rejection.

A Note for GlobalTrak Customers

GlobalTrak is our self-managed service, which allows you to retain the responsibility of renewing licenses directly with the states. GlobalTrak customers must continuously upload licenses for GRS verification and approval as those licenses become renewed.

If you would like support with renewals and license management, you can explore our GRS-managed Monitored Services.

Criteria for Approval

Whether you are uploading a manufacturer license, importer license, joint license, or quilted clothing license, the GRS team follows these steps to ensure that the information you have provided will pass certification with the regulating states.

Manufacturer Licensing

GRS verifies all licenses against the URN-issuing license. This is the license from the state that issued the URN, indicated by the URN prefix. For example, UT1234CN indicates that the Utah license is the URN-issuing license.

If the URN-issuing license is not up to date or has incorrect information, it needs to be updated with the issuing state before we can make any changes to your account information or approve other licenses that reflect different information.

GRS Verifies:

• The URN matches
• The full, legal business name is printed and matches

  • If your company has a DBA, you must register the full legal name, not just the DBA

• The full facility address is printed and matches

  • This must be the address of the facility where the final products are manufactured (where the filling material is placed inside and the final zip/stitch is made)
  • PO boxes are not permitted

• The expiration date is valid

Importer Licensing

If the importer licensing has a joint URN record affiliated, we will verify against the URN-issuing license. Otherwise, we will verify that all licenses are registered under the same company name and address.

GRS Verifies:

• The full, legal business name is printed and all licenses match

  • If your company has a DBA, you must register the full legal name, not just the DBA

• The full facility address is printed and all license match

  • This must match the address printed on the products’ law labels. The importer license is the record for the state to verify against.
  • PO boxes are not permitted

• The expiration date is valid

Quilted Clothing Licensing

Two entities are required to hold a quilted clothing license in the state of Utah:

1. The RN or WPL holder (the entity registered with the FTC)
2. Each manufacturing facility producing filled apparel items ("quilted clothing")

GRS Verifies:

• The full, legal business name is printed

  • If your company has a DBA, you must register the full legal name, not just the DBA
  • If the license is issued to the RN holder, we verify against the registration record on the FTC's online database

• The full facility address is printed

  • If the license is issued to the RN holder, we verify against the registration record on the FTC's online database
  • If the license is issued to the manufacturer, this must be the address of the facility where the final products are manufactured (where the filling material is placed inside and the final zip/stitch is made)

• The expiration date is valid
• The RN or WPL is only printed on the license if the registered company is the registered entity with the FTC (manufacturer quilted clothing licenses should not have a RN or WPL listed)

Common Rejection Reasons

If you get a notice of rejection after uploading a license, one of these common issues may be the reason.

Company Name and/or Address Is Not Registered to the Correct Company

Not all states issue importer licensing. Even if you hold a joint URN, the license will be registered as a manufacturer record in non-importer regulating states or in states that do not issue joint registrations.

For this reason, all licenses that are issued under the URN must be registered to the manufacturing facility where the products were made.

At a minimum, the manufacturer must be registered in all regulating states under the URN record. Importer-regulating states may require an additional license for the company whose name is printed on the law labels, if it differs from the manufacturer.

We put together a guide to help manufacturers and importers understand which license type best fits their needs.

Company Name and/or Address Does Not Match URN-Issuing License or Other Uploaded Licenses

The URN-issuing license dictates the registration record for the manufacturer. All affiliated licenses are verified against this license.

If you submit a company name or address that does not match those listed on your URN-issuing license, you will receive a rejection. If you would like to change any information, your URN-issuing license must be updated first before GRS can approve other licenses with updated information.

Missing Pennsylvania Validation Information

Every year, the state of Pennsylvania emails a renewal invoice document to PA license holders. Once you have submitted payment to Pennsylvania, the invoice document becomes “validated” and is now your license.

For approval in the GRS system, we need to see that the validation information box on the document is completed with your payment information. That will let us confirm that payment was sent and processed by the state.

The validation information box currently only asks for check information, but we can confirm that Pennsylvania also accepts credit card payment. If you paid Pennsylvania by credit card, you can simply put “Paid by CC” in the Check Number box and the date of payment in the Check Date box.

What To Do If Your License is Rejected

If a license is rejected, the GRS system will send a notification to the email addresses listed in your company account. Please make sure that you whitelist no-reply@globalrsinc.com so you receive notifications promptly.

If a license correction is needed, our team will provide you with state contact information to rectify the issue. During this time, you may need to pass testing with a retailer. In this event, please send GRS proof that the state is currently working on your license correction and we can provide you with a temporary expiration date.