Sources and method

We use official laws and authority pages only: EU institutions, the UK Government, US federal agencies and Japanese ministries. If an official page does not state a fact, we publish "not stated", never an estimate. 17 rules are covered.

For each rule we read the official guidance page and, where needed, the legal text. A fact is published only with a short verbatim quote, the page address and the date we read it, and a machine check confirms that each quote appears in the page we saved. The match between your answers (power, radio, children, contact) and a rule is our reading of the scope in that quote; where a scope adds further conditions, we show them instead of deciding.

What this does not cover

• A result never says a product needs no certification. It says which of the rules we read are triggered, and lists the rules we have not read.
• Whether a product falls under a rule can depend on details our questions do not ask, such as voltage, product class, intended age group or listed product types. Where the scope states such a condition, we show it.
• We publish no cost or lead-time estimates for testing or certification, because no official source states them. We show only fees that a public authority publishes.
• Standards named in the checklists are those the official pages name.
• Importers and sellers can have duties of their own; we show those the official pages state.
• Accessories can fall under rules that your product itself does not trigger. A charger or power supply sold with a battery product, for example, can be covered by electrical safety rules: check it as a separate product.
• Rules change. We show when each page was read.

European Union: rules we read

European Union: rules we have not checked

• RoHS Directive 2011/65/EU (restricted substances in electrical and electronic equipment)
• REACH Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 (chemicals in products)
• WEEE Directive 2012/19/EU (producer registration and recycling of electrical equipment)
• Batteries Regulation (EU) 2023/1542
• Ecodesign and energy labelling rules for specific product groups
• Delegated acts under the Radio Equipment Directive (for example cybersecurity requirements)
• Rules for cosmetics, textiles and other products that touch the skin
• National rules of individual member states (languages of instructions, packaging registers, national marks)

Great Britain (UK): rules we read

Great Britain (UK): rules we have not checked

• Rules for materials and articles in contact with food (assimilated Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004 and the national instruments)
• UK RoHS Regulations 2012 (restricted substances in electrical and electronic equipment)
• UK REACH (chemicals in products)
• WEEE Regulations 2013 (producer registration and recycling)
• Batteries and Accumulators Regulations 2009
• Product security rules for internet-connectable products (PSTI regime)
• Ecodesign and energy labelling rules for specific product groups
• Rules for cosmetics, textiles and other products that touch the skin

United States: rules we read

United States: rules we have not checked

• FCC rules outside Part 15 (for example for industrial, scientific and medical equipment)
• Product-specific CPSC mandatory standards and bans (for example small parts, magnets, lithium batteries, flammability)
• FDA rules for food-contact articles, cosmetics and medical devices
• Department of Energy efficiency standards and labelling
• State laws (for example California Proposition 65 warnings) and retailer or insurer requirements such as UL listing

Japan: rules we read

Japan: rules we have not checked

• Consumer Product Safety Act (PSC mark for specified consumer products)
• Food Sanitation Act rules for food-contact articles and toys
• Household Goods Quality Labelling Act and other labelling rules
• Rules for cosmetics and medical devices
• Energy-saving rules for specific product groups

Updates

We re-read every source each quarter and show the date we last read each page. If a quote can no longer be found on its page, the fact is withdrawn until it is checked again.

Not legal advice

ProductCertCheck gives general information from official pages. It is not legal advice or a conformity assessment, and it is not affiliated with any authority, test laboratory or certification body. Confirm every point with the authority or a qualified professional before you place a product on the market.