UKCA marking

"UKCA" redirects here. For the Chemistry-Aerosol-Climate model, see United Kingdom Chemistry and Aerosols model.

The UKCA marking (an abbreviation of UK Conformity Assessed) is a conformity mark that indicates conformity with the applicable requirements for products sold within Great Britain.^[1] The government intended that it should replace the CE marking for products sold in Great Britain. Both markings continue to be accepted in the UK market.^[2]

UKCA marking
Standards organization	Department for Business and Trade
Effective region	Great Britain
Effective since	31 December 2020
Predecessor	CE marking
Product category	Various
Website	gov.uk/guidance/using-the-ukca-marking

An earbud case with the UKCA conformity mark

Applicability of UKCA and CE marks

The UKCA marking became part of UK law at the end of the Brexit transition period, on 31 December 2020, with the coming into force of The Product Safety and Metrology etc. (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019^[3][4][5] which was intended to replace the CE marking.

The UKCA marking also intended to replace the reversed epsilon^{[lower-alpha 1]} marking used on aerosol sprays and measuring container bottles.^[6][7]

The Government planned for UKCA compliance to be a mandatory requirement since then, but the CE mark was accepted as an alternative, initially for the transition period until 1 January 2022.^[8] This deadline for including the UKCA mark was extended to 1 January 2023, then to 31 December 2024, and then on 1 August 2023 the government effectively withdrew the requirement for UKCA, and stated that the CE mark remains acceptable for most goods as a valid sign of conformance.^[6][9][10]

The scope and procedures of the UKCA scheme initially follow those for CE marking. The Government said that after 31 December 2020 the two schemes may diverge.^[6] Initial guidance regarding UKCA marking was originally published by the Government of the United Kingdom in 2019 ahead of a potential no-deal Brexit but was subsequently withdrawn.^[11]

Characteristics of UKCA marking

The height of the UKCA marking must be at least 5mm; it may be larger so long as the proportions are kept.^[1] The marking should be "easily visible, legible, and permanently attached to the goods".

The government also intends to bring additional flexibility regarding the placement of the UKCA marking. This may allow the marking to be placed in an accompanying document or sticky label instead, despite the permanent extension of the CE marking in the UK.^[12]

Additionally, the Fast-Track UKCA Process will be put into place where businesses may put the UKCA marking under the UK regulations or the CE marking under the EU directives. It is not intended to be a mandatory process. ^[12]

Northern Ireland

"UKNI" redirects here. For the social security form of the UK, see National Insurance.

UKNI marking used to supplement CE marking for goods released on to the NI market

The UKCA marking only applies to products placed on the market in Great Britain. In Northern Ireland, a part of the United Kingdom that remains aligned to the European Single Market due to the Northern Ireland Protocol, CE marking continues to be required.^[13] UK-resident bodies are no longer qualified to carry out CE mark conformity assessments for goods intended for the EU, but under the Northern Ireland Protocol they may do so for Northern Ireland. Where a UK body has carried out the assessment for goods intended for Northern Ireland, the product should display both the CE mark and a UKNI mark (sometimes also called UK(NI)).^[14] However, goods intended for export to the EU must be assessed by an EU-resident body and carry a CE mark (and must not carry the UKNI mark).^{[14][lower-alpha 2]}

As part of the British Government's policy of "unfettered access" for "qualifying Northern Ireland goods"^{[lower-alpha 3]} to be sold in Great Britain without restriction, goods may be sold in Great Britain using the relevant Northern Ireland markings and without any additional approvals that would be required for the UKCA marking.^[14]

Accepted markings on each market

Market	Accepted marking(s)
Goods placed on the market in Great Britain	CE or UKCA
Goods placed on the market in Northern Ireland	CE (if using an EU notified body) CE and UKNI (if using a UK conformity assessment body)[lower-alpha 4]
Qualifying goods from Northern Ireland placed on the market in Great Britain	CE, or CE and UKNI[lower-alpha 4]
Goods placed on the market in the European Economic Area	CE[lower-alpha 5]

See also

• Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals#In non-EU countries for the proposed "UK REACH".
• European Committee for Standardization and European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization: the UK remains a member of these European Standards bodies.^[16]
• Kitemark - an early British service quality trademark by the British Standards Institute, first implemented in 1903

Notes

1. U+025C ɜ LATIN SMALL LETTER REVERSED OPEN E
2. With that exception, it remains permissible in the UK, the EU and most other jurisdictions for products to carry multiple conformance marks (such as FCC mark, CCC mark etc.).
3. Defined in The Definition of Qualifying Northern Ireland Goods (EU Exit) Regulations 2020.^[15]
4. If the UKNI marking is used, it must be used alongside the CE marking, and may not be placed on the EEA market. In other words, it is not permissible to use the UKNI marking alone and any product with the UKNI marking cannot be exported to the EEA.
5. The UKCA or other conformity mark(s) may appear alongside this but the UKNI mark must not appear on goods intended for the EEA market^[14]

References

1. "The Product Safety and Metrology etc. (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019: Schedule 33", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2019/696 (sch. 33), retrieved 2020-08-28
2. Cooper, Martyn (18 November 2022). "CE Marking to continue to be recognized in Great Britain for a further two years". FETA.
3. "The Product Safety and Metrology etc. (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019". legislation.gov.uk. The National Archives. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
4. Foster, Peter (20 July 2020). "Manufacturers urge government to clarify UK's new standards regime". Financial Times.
5. "What Brexit holds for construction equipment manufacturers – The Future Regulatory Landscape". Construction Equipment Association. 2020-08-12. Archived from the original on 2021-10-21.
6. "CE marking guidance". UK Government. 1 August 2023. Click "See all updates" for the various revisions.
7. "Aerosol Dispensers Directive". Retrieved 28 May 2024.
8. UK Government (2022-11-14). "Businesses to be given UK product marking flexibility".
9. UK Government (11 October 2023). "Using the UKCA marking". See previous update of 24 August 2021.
10. Partridge, Joanna (August 2023). "UK to retain EU safety mark in latest Brexit climbdown". The Guardian.
11. "Prepare to use the UKCA mark after Brexit". Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. 2 February 2019 [withdrawn on 30 January 2020]. Archived from the original on 2020-08-27.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
12. "Policy Update: Placing products on the market in Great Britain using UK or EU product markings" (PDF). GOV.UK. January 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
13. "Placing manufactured goods on the market in Northern Ireland from 1 January 2021". Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. August 2023. In Northern Ireland, EU conformity markings will continue to be used to show that goods meet EU rules after 1 January 2021. For most manufactured goods, this is the CE marking, but there are some other markings for specific products (such as the wheel marking or Pi mark).
14. "Using the UKNI marking". GOV.UK. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
15. "The Definition of Qualifying Northern Ireland Goods (EU Exit) Regulations 2020". legislation.gov.uk. The National Archives. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
16. "CEN and CENELEC agreement on UK membership safeguards compatibility of standards and seamless European market access". British Standards Institution. 28 June 2021. Retrieved 5 May 2022.