Country prefixes

What country prefixes mean

The first digits of a GTIN are commonly called the country prefix or GS1 prefix. These digits identify which GS1 member organisation allocated the number for use. As stated on GS1’s website ¹, the country prefix does not identify where a product was made.

A truncated version of the GS1 Country Code Prefix table is presented here for convenience. The complete list can be found on GS1’s website, and many other websites also present copies of it, such as the International Barcodes Network country code reference.

Prefix range	GS1 member organisation
000–019	GS1 US
030–039	GS1 US
060–139	GS1 US
300–379	GS1 France
400–440	GS1 Germany
460–469	GS1 Russia
471	GS1 Taiwan
489	GS1 Hong Kong
490–499	GS1 Japan
500–509	GS1 UK
690–699	GS1 China
930–939	GS1 Australia
940-949	GS1 New Zealand

Common misconception: prefix equals origin

A barcode prefix does not indicate where a product was manufactured.

A company headquartered in one country may receive GTINs from its local GS1 member organisation, then use those numbers on products manufactured elsewhere. Conversely, a product made in China might carry a GTIN with a US prefix if the brand owner is American.

Examples:

• A German company (prefix 400–440) manufacturing in Vietnam
• A US brand (prefix 000–019) with production in Bangladesh
• A UK retailer (prefix 500–509) sourcing globally
• An Australian food brand (prefix 930–939) sells snacks produced in New Zealand

This is standard practice and fully valid under GS1 General Specifications. A seperate product packaging label denoting the product country of origin (i.e. Made in United States, Made in Australia, etc. etc.) is a far superiour means of identifying where a product was made than relying on the GTIN country prefix matching the product country of origin. There is no guarantee that the country a product was produced in will match its GTIN’s country code prefix.

What retailers actually care about

Retail systems validate:

1. Uniqueness — the GTIN is not duplicated in their database
2. Validity — check digit is mathematically correct
3. Product data — description, weight, category match the barcode

Most retailers do not verify or restrict based on a GTIN’s country prefix code. Most retailer systems accept any valid GTIN regardless of allocation source. However, a small number of retrailers do require that a GTINs company prefix element matches the company stored in GS1’s database, see: non-GS1 use cases for additional context on acceptance.

Reseller-issued numbers

Prior to the existence of GS1 in the early 2000’s GTINs within the United States were issued by a different legal entity called the UCC under an ownership model, rather than GS1’s current licensing model. This forms the basis for the barcode reseller business model: selling unused GTINs allocated for use by the UCC of which the reseller is the legal owner (These transferable UCC issued GTINs always start with a prefix of 06 or 07, which you may recognize from the above table as being under the US country code prefix range). Companies that are not GS1 members can obtain valid GTINs through barcode resellers selling unused numbers from this prefix pool.

Key points about reseller-issued GTINs:

• They are genuine GTINs that were legally issued for use by the predecessor to GS1
• They are not “registered” in GS1’s GEPIR database (Global Electronic Party Information Registry) under the reseller customer’s name
  • this database shows the company the UCC initally allocated the GTIN to and does not reflect the current owner
  • GEPIR has since been deprecated, replaced by a new GS1 service called ‘verified by GS1’ — some retailers still use GEPIR to match GTINs to product producers during their brand verification process, making reseller-issued GTINs unsuitable for such retailers, with a notable example being Amazon
• They function identically for retail scanning and inventory management
• Some retailers may require GS1-direct issuance of GTINs for product acceptance into their supplier programs

The International Barcodes Network operates 120+ member sites worldwide providing GTINs to small and medium enterprises. These serve businesses needing smaller quantities than GS1’s annual membership model.

Prefix structure in detail

Barcode prefix standards define how GS1 allocates number ranges:

GTIN type	Prefix position	Total digits
GTIN-13 (EAN-13)	First 2–3 digits	13
GTIN-12 (UPC-A)	First digit (system character)	12
GTIN-14	Indicator digit + prefix	14

GS1 issued UPC-A barcodes used primarily in North America do not use the same prefix system; the first digit indicates product category (0, 1, 6, 7, 8, or 9 for general merchandise).

Practical guidance

For businesses choosing GTIN sources:

Consideration	GS1 issued	Reseller
Annual renewal fee structure	Yes	One-time typical
GEPIR registration	Yes	No
Suitable for major retail chains	Yes	Major retailers may require GS1 issued GTINs
Suitable for independent retail	Yes	Yes
Minimum GTIN purchase quantity	Usually higher. Individual GS1 country offices may offer smaller quantity GTIN purchases, but it varies by region	Flexible, down to even a single GTIN

For most small businesses selling through their own channels, online marketplaces, or independent retailers, a reseller-issued GTIN provides functional equivalence, with no descernable difference. Always verify specific retailer requirements before committing to either path in case they require GS1 issued GTINs for their supplier program.

Summary

• GS1 prefixes show allocation source, not manufacturing origin
• Global supply chains routinely cause GTIN prefixes and product location of manufacture to differ
• Retail validation focuses on uniqueness and data accuracy, not prefix geography
• Reseller GTINs are valid numbers with practical limitations for a limited number of retail programs

For further reading about GTIN country prefixes, see GS1 US: What is a GTIN and the GS1 GTIN standards page.

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Footnotes

1. GS1, “GS1 Company Prefix” — https://www.gs1.org/standards/id-keys/company-prefix ↩