Dear ACB Clients and Colleagues:
Clarification of the UKCA Marking for Radio Devices
The Brexit situation for device approvals is getting more clear and the requirements less cloudy. ACB is keen on keeping up with the requirements to inform our clients to keep trade flowing. (ACB is a Notified Body, acceptable in the UK and the EU).
We encourage our clients to be prepared for 31 December 2021 when the CE Marking will not be accepted in the UK. The UKCA Marking will be mandatory. This affects the production of labels and related materials. For the most part a UKCA Marking AND a CE Marking should be affixed to your product from 31 December 2021, if you’re selling into both markets.
We note the following guidance:
For Radio Products, a UKCA certificate is mandatory after 31 December 2021 where a “non-designated” (non-harmonized) standard has been used to demonstrate compliance with the essential requirement for the efficient use of frequency spectrum (regulation 6 (2) in the UK Radio Equipment Regulations, which corresponds with Article 3.2 of the RED).
Until 31 December 2021 the CE Marking is still accepted in the UK, even in those cases where a Notified Body for the RED has issued a mandatory EU-type examination certificate (e.g. when a non-harmonized standard was used to demonstrate compliance with Article 3.2 of the RED).
Please note that the UK integrates the lists of harmonized standards which are published in the EU Official Journal for EU Directives into their own lists of designated standards. There might be some cases where the UK doesn’t need to integrate such EU harmonized standards into their own lists of designated standards. For example, some frequency bands in the UK are different from the frequency bands in the EU or are not used in the EU for the same purpose. In those cases the UK can set their own standards. But, those cases are very rare and, if the manufacturer applies the correct designated standard, then the UKCA certificate is still voluntary and the manufacturer can use a Declaration of Conformity (Self-Declaration) to affix the UKCA Marking.
In short, after 31 December 2021, if a manufacturer needs a mandatory EU-type examination certificate for the RED then they also need a mandatory UKCA certificate for Great Britain (GB).
Pieter Robben
Pieter Robben is a regulatory review engineer at ACB Europe. Pieter is a TCB for the FCC, an FCB for ISED (formerly Industry Canada), an RCB for Japan, and a Notified Body for the R&TTE and EMC Directives. Pieter’s experience as a Notified Body and Certification Body is a potent part of our Certification team. Pieter has been reviewing FCC applications since before the TCB program was created. He is well known in the European community as past chairman of the R&TTECA. Pieter has been working with MIC matters since the inauguration of the Japan-EU Mutual Recognition Arrangement. Pieter’s past experience includes EMC, Radio and Safety testing and certification for test laboratories and manufacturers. He has been in the industry for more than 20 years. Pieter provides worldwide services to our global customers from his office in the Groningen area of the Netherlands.
