EU requirements: EU Directive 2014/53/EU (“RED”) regulates radio equipment. RED is the overarching EU framework for the essential health and safety requirements and electromagnetic compatibility for the design and manufacture of radio equipment, labelling requirements of the radio equipment, and the applicable conformity assessment procedure.
If you manufacture, import, or distribute radio equipment that is sold in the EU, you must comply with the requirements of the RED. You must also comply with national laws and regulations in Member States, which implement RED.
Please see below for further information about EU requirements.
UK requirements: The UK’s Radio Equipment Regulations 2017/1206 (“RER”) regulates radio equipment. RER is the overarching framework for the essential health and safety requirements and electromagnetic compatibility for the design and manufacture of radio equipment, labelling requirements of the radio equipment, and the applicable conformity assessment procedure.
If you manufacture, import or distribute radio equipment that is sold in the UK, you must comply with the requirements of RER. Different rules apply to goods you sell in: (1) Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales); and (2) Northern Ireland. If you also sell radio equipment on Amazon EU websites, then you must also comply with national laws and regulations in EU Member States, which implement the EU’s Radio Equipment Directive (2014/53/EU).
Please see below for further information about UK requirements.
This material is for information purposes and you should not take it as a substitute for legal advice. We encourage you to consult your legal counsel for any concerns about the laws and regulations related to your product, as well as to consult the national laws and regulations implementing RED. This material only reflects the position at the date of writing and requirements in the EU and the UK may change – particularly in light of the developing position with Brexit. You should refer to current UK Brexit guidance about your products (see below) to learn more about changes that may affect you following the end of the transition period.
Red applies to radio equipment. Radio equipment is defined as:
There are some exceptions listed in Annex I of RED (which include amongst other examples, certain marine equipment, certain equipment used by radio amateurs) and radio equipment exclusively used for activities concerning public security, defence, and state security.
Further, delegated acts may be adopted to specify categories or classes of radio equipment that are subject to additional essential requirements. To date, there has only been delegated regulation (EU) 2019/320, which from March 17, 2022, will require that mobile devices ensure caller location is available for transmission in emergency communications.
RED sets out obligations for manufacturers, authorized representatives, importers, and distributors.
Declaration of Conformity and CE marking
A manufacturer’s responsibilities include the following:
An importer’s responsibilities include ensuring the following:
A distributor’s responsibilities include:
Labelling and information
Manufacturers and importers must ensure that radio equipment bears:
Distributor responsibilities include verifying the radio equipment bears a CE mark, a type, batch or serial number, or other element allowing its identification; and the manufacturer and importer details.
Where it is not possible for this information to be on the radio equipment itself, the above information should be on its packaging or a document accompanying the radio equipment.
In addition, proper instructions, safety information, and the Declaration of Conformity or the internet address at which the Declaration of Conformity can be accessed must accompany the radio equipment.
Information available on the packaging must allow the identification of the Member States or the geographical area within a Member State where any restrictions on putting into service or requirements for authorisation of use exist.
Registration
As of June 12, 2018, manufacturers must register radio equipment types that fall within certain categories of radio equipment that are affected by a low level of compliance with the essential requirements of RED. The allocated registration number should be affixed to the radio equipment.
When radio equipment does not conform with RED, manufacturers, importers, and distributors should immediately take the corrective measures necessary to bring radio equipment into conformity, to withdraw or to recall it, as appropriate.
When radio equipment presents a risk, manufacturers, importers, and distributors should immediately inform the competent national authorities of the Member States where it was sold, along with the non-conformity details and of any corrective measures taken.
Manufacturers, importers, and distributors must provide a competent national authority, with all the information and documentation in paper or electronic form necessary to demonstrate the conformity of the radio equipment with RED following a reasoned request.
We strongly encourage you to visit the European Commission’s website for more information on Radio Equipment Directive:
https://ec.europa.eu/growth/sectors/electrical-engineering/red-directive_de
RER applies to all products sold in the UK, but the provisions apply differently to Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales, “GB”) and Northern Ireland. You can read more about the position in Northern Ireland (“NI”) below.
RER applies to radio equipment. Radio equipment is defined as:
There are some exceptions listed in Schedule 1 of RER (which include amongst other examples, certain marine equipment, certain equipment used by radio amateurs and radio equipment exclusively used for activities concerning public security, defence, and state security).
RER sets out obligations for manufacturers, authorised representatives, importers, and distributors.
Declaration of Conformity and conformity marking
A manufacturer’s responsibilities include the following:
An importer’s responsibilities include ensuring the following:
A distributor’s responsibilities include:
Labelling and information
Manufacturers and importers must ensure that radio equipment bears:
Distributor responsibilities include verifying the radio equipment bears the conformity marking, a type, batch or serial number, or other element allowing its identification; and the manufacturer and importer details.
Where it is not possible for the above information (excluding the conformity marking) to be on the radio equipment itself, the information should be on its packaging or a document accompanying the radio equipment. The UK Government has released guidance on alternative means of providing GB importer traceability information until December 31, 2022. See the "Brexit: UK Government guidance" section below for links to this guidance.
In addition, proper instructions, safety information, and the Declaration of Conformity or the internet address at which the Declaration of Conformity can be accessed must accompany the radio equipment. A specific Declaration of Conformity that refers to UK legislation and standards will be required for products sold in GB with a UKCA mark from January 1, 2021. See the "Brexit: UK Government guidance" section below for links to the UK Government guidance on this.
Where applicable, information available on the packaging must allow the identification of the any geographical area where restrictions on putting into service or requirements for authorisation of use exist.
Registration
Following the end of the Brexit transition period, the UK may introduce a requirement for manufacturers to register radio equipment types that fall within certain categories of radio equipment that are affected by a low level of compliance with the essential requirements of RER. In which case, the allocated registration number should be affixed to the radio equipment.
Please note that different rules will apply in NI from January 1, 2021 as a result of the Northern Ireland Protocol. In particular:
When radio equipment does not conform with RER, manufacturers, importers, and distributors should immediately take the corrective measures necessary to bring radio equipment into conformity, to withdraw or to recall it, as appropriate.
When radio equipment presents a risk, manufacturers, importers, and distributors should immediately inform Trading Standards (or HSE where the equipment is for use at work) giving details of the non-conformity and of any corrective measures taken.
Manufacturers, importers, and distributors must provide the competent UK authority with all the information and documentation in paper or electronic form necessary to demonstrate the conformity of the radio equipment with RER following a reasoned request.
The UK Government has released guidance on selling products in GB and NI after Brexit. This guidance provides information for manufacturers, importers and distributors regarding compliance requirements from January 1, 2021, including on:
We encourage you to review this guidance, alongside any other specific UK Government guidance that applies to your product. You should consult your legal counsel if you have questions about how the laws and regulations apply to your products from January 1, 2021.
The Brexit guidance can be found here:
We strongly encourage you to review guidance on RER provided by the UK Government Office for Product Safety and Standards:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/radio-equipment-regulations-2017
We also encourage you to visit the UK’s Business Companion website, which contains guidance on UK product compliance rules:
https://www.businesscompanion.info/en/get-started
https://www.businesscompanion.info/en/quick-guides/product-safety/electrical-equipment