Common main requirements
- Declarations of conformity and marking: Great Britain currently recognises both UKCA and CE marking for most electronic product categories, with no end date set for CE recognition; Northern Ireland and the EU require CE.
- EMC testing: All electronic devices can emit electromagnetic fields and must not interfere with, or be unduly affected by, other equipment.
- Electronic safety testing to standards such as IEC 62368-1.
- Radio equipment testing for anything with Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or other wireless radio connectivity.
- RoHS: limits on hazardous substances in every material of the finished product, plastics and cables included, not just the board.
- Producer obligations: WEEE registration for electrical waste, and battery regulations where the product contains them.
How we de-risk certification
Our development process plans around passing these tests. We identify which standards apply at the evaluation stage, build prototypes to pass the same tests the production product will face, and use pre-compliance EMC testing to find problems early, before committing to the larger cost of certification. Product-specific rules (toys, machinery, medical) add requirements, and regulations change, so we confirm the exact list for your product with our test partners at the start of a project.
For a worked example of taking a product from prototype through to certification, see our case study on safety testing a new product.