Federal standard since 2021, and it names reupholstery — but not when the piece keeps the same owner.
Written by a British upholsterer. This is informational guidance rather than legal advice, and I work in England. Every statement is sourced and the sources are listed at the foot of the page — check them, and where a job carries real risk get the requirement confirmed in writing by whoever is responsible for the premises.
Domestic work
16 CFR Part 1640, adopting California TB 117-2013
Reupholstery is in scope — with one exception
The standard applies to upholstered furniture manufactured, imported or reupholstered on or after 25 June 2021. But CPSC confirmed to the National Upholstery Association that it does not apply where the furniture keeps the same owner through the work. A customer’s own chair coming back to them is outside it; a piece you reupholster and sell is inside it. That single distinction decides most jobs and almost nobody knows about it.
Smoulder resistance only
This is the biggest difference from the British regime and it catches people who have worked to UK rules. TB 117-2013 tests resistance to a smouldering cigarette. There is no match or open-flame test at federal level for domestic furniture.
Four components, tested separately
Cover fabric, barrier material, resilient filling, and decking material where there is a loose cushion. Each passes or fails on its own.
The barrier layer is the simple route
Under TB 117-2013, if the barrier passes, the piece complies even where the cover and filling would fail on their own. Fitting a compliant barrier as standard practice solves the customer’s-own-fabric problem outright — which is a cleaner answer than Britain has.
The label
- Required on covered furniture reupholstered on or after 25 June 2022
- Permanent label, front of the tag, in English
- White background, black text, black border
- State and city label rules sit on top of this — California has had its own since 2015
Commercial and contract work
NFPA 101 Life Safety Code, by occupancy and sprinklers
California TB 133 has been repealed
The open-flame test for public seating that the trade knew for decades is gone. Do not specify to it, and be wary of anyone still quoting it as current.
But open-flame testing has not disappeared
NFPA 101 still requires it in unsprinklered buildings for certain occupancies, via ASTM E1537 — a more general version of the old TB 133 procedure. Whether it applies turns on the building, not the furniture.
It depends entirely on occupancy and sprinklers
The table below is the whole of it. A great many occupancies require nothing at all.
Ask the building, not the supplier
The requirement comes from the premises’ fire code and its sprinkler status. Get it in writing from whoever is responsible for the building before you cut anything.
| Occupancy | Sprinklered | Not sprinklered |
|---|---|---|
| Ambulatory health care | NFPA 260 or 261 | ASTM E1537 |
| Detention and correctional | NFPA 261 | NFPA 261 |
| Dormitories | NFPA 260 or 261 | ASTM E1537 |
| Health care | NFPA 260 or 261 | ASTM E1537 |
| Hotel | NFPA 260 or 261 | ASTM E1537 |
| Residential board and care | NFPA 260 or 261 | ASTM E1537 |
| Assembly | None | None |
| Business | None | None |
| Day-care | None | None |
| Educational | None | None |
| Industrial | None | None |
| Lodging and rooming houses | None | None |
| Mercantile | None | None |
| Storage | None | None |
NFPA 101 Life Safety Code occupancies and required tests. The International Fire Code accepts either ASTM E1537 or the old California TB 133 where an open-flame test is required.
Sources.
- 16 CFR Part 1640 — eCFR
- California TB 117-2013 — Department of Consumer Affairs
- CPSC direct final rule, 9 April 2021 — Federal Register
- National Upholstery Association guidance, including their CPSC clarification on reupholstery
- CPSC Small Business Ombudsman
Last checked 2026-08-02. Fire rules change — verify before you rely on this.