EU, US Would Recognize Testing for Most Products Under EU Proposal

The U.S. and the European Union would recognize each other’s product testing across a variety of sectors including electronics, toys, machinery and measuring instruments, under a proposed agreement released by the EU on Nov. 22. “The EU proposal seeks an agreement, under which the EU and the U.S. would accept the conformity assessment results of each other’s assessment bodies, certifying products against the legal requirement of the other side. This would enable exporters to seek certification of their products in their originating country,” the European Commission said in a press release.

“The proposal covers all relevant industrial sectors where third-party conformity assessment is required by either side,” the press release said. The U.S. and EU would recognize each other’s product testing for electrical and electronic equipment; radio and telecommunications terminal equipment; electromagnetic compatibility; toys; construction products; machinery, including parts and components; measuring instruments; hot-water boilers; ATEX equipment; noise emission for outdoor equipment; recreational craft; pressure equipment; and appliances that burn gaseous fuels.

It would also apply to product testing for personal protective equipment; equipment placed on board a ship; restriction of hazardous substances in electronic equipment; pyrotechnic articles; explosives for civil uses; simple pressure vessels; lifts; and cableway installations. Medical devices would also be covered, but under separate provisions that involve recognition under the Medical Device Single Audit Programme (MDSAP).

For each of these products, exporters in the U.S. and EU would be able to find conformity assessment bodies to test for compliance in the EU and the U.S., respectively. “The EU Proposal aims at enabling exporters to seek certification of products they want to export, in the country from which they want to export them, to prove their compliance with the applicable rules in the destination country,” an explanatory note from the EC said. “This can facilitate trade while ensuring that a high level of protection is fully preserved. Nothing in the agreement will limit the ability of each party to regulate and set its own level of protection in technical regulations. US exports, whether certified in the US or in the EU, shall continue to be subject to the EU technical regulations,” it said.

Part of the proposal is a simplification of the U.S. Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory program requirements set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for electrical standards. EU labs would be eligible for recognition as NRTL, and OSHA would not require that individual components be subject to certification if incorporated into a certified final product, among other provisions. OSHA would also have to use a single certification mark.

“The EU is ready to conclude an agreement as early as next year,” the EC said in its press release. Under the EU’s proposal, the agreement would take effect one to two months after its adoption. Results of conformity assessments would have to be recognized no later than two years after entry into force, the EU said.