Certification Introduction
UKCA is the abbreviation of UK Conformity Assessed. On February 2, 2019, the British government announced that it would adopt the UKCA marking scheme in the event of a no-deal Brexit. After March 29, trade with the UK will be conducted in accordance with the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO). The UKCA mark is the same as the CE mark. The manufacturer is responsible for ensuring that the product meets the standards stipulated in the decree and making a corresponding mark on the product after self-declaration in accordance with the prescribed procedures.
Most products currently under CE marking control will have to be affixed with the UKCA mark if they are to be exported to the UK market (England, Wales and Scotland) in the future. The UKCA mark does not apply to products entering Northern Ireland.
Certification background
The UK is currently in the Brexit transition period, which will end at the end of 2020. On September 1, 2020, the UK Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy officially announced on its official website that the UKCA logo will be used from January 1, 2021.
Most products currently covered by the CE marking will also fall within the scope of use of the UKCA marking. It will also apply to aerosol products.
From January 1, 2021, products that require CE marking in the EU market will need to have the UKCA mark, manufacturer's declaration of conformity and complete technical documentation for conformity assessment to enter the UK market. The requirements of the UKCA Declaration of Conformity DoC are also equivalent to the EU CE marking Declaration of Conformity, but the corresponding British BS standard must be used on the DoC and the UK regulations must be declared.
As a transitional period, products with the same technical requirements and marking rules in the UK and EU will still be accepted for CE marking before January 1, 2022. However, if the CE marking rules for products change during this period, the CE marking made according to the new EU rules will not be accepted in the UK market. Therefore, it is recommended to transition to the use of the UKCA mark as soon as possible.
