Manufacturers of electrical and electronic equipment face an uphill battle when they choose to sell their products abroad. Every country has its own set of rules and regulations, and they have dedicated regulatory bodies to oversee the process. Regulatory compliance can be a long, challenging, and laborious process. Moreover, countries continually update their requirements for a wide range of reasons. For those who are not familiar with the process of regulatory compliance abroad, it can seem like a significant obstacle to accessing new markets.
Luckily, regulatory compliance is nothing new, and the process has become more comfortable over time as many countries, such as those in the EU, have adopted group standards for testing and compliance, which significantly reduces the time to market for electronic equipment in certain parts of the world. The critical component to making the leap toward selling internationally is to do ample requirements gathering for the process in each country where products will be sold and to follow the rules and guidelines as stated. Additionally, it is vital to continually conduct requirements gathering due to the ever-evolving nature of regulatory compliance.
If your manufacturing company is looking to sell electronics and telecom equipment abroad, but you do not know where to begin, follow this easy-to-use regulatory compliance checklist to start the regulatory certification process in your country of choice.
Country-specific regulatory compliance requirements
Each country has its own set of requirements that every foreign manufacturer must follow. Manufacturers seeking to sell in specific countries will need to know the following pieces of information before beginning the application process:
- What laws and regulations specifically apply to your type of electronic equipment? When determining the answer to this questions, be sure to include safety regulations, hygienic regulations (where applicable), energy efficiency regulations, packaging requirements, labeling requirements, and environmental laws.
- Does the country have a published list of equipment that requires approval? The first step to understanding the compliance requirements for any given country is to know what products and equipment need compliance certification. Difference products will likely have different certification requirements and processes. Telecommunications equipment, for example, may require country-specific testing to ensure compatibility with the country’s network. Refrigerators, on the other hand, will not need such testing, but will likely require additional environmental certification requirements. Each type of equipment will require its own certification process.
- What is the regulatory body responsible for compliance and certification? Countries such as India split regulatory compliance oversight among several agencies. It is essential for manufacturers to know which agency (or agencies) oversees their type of product, testing, and approval.
- What are the country’s customs regulations? Obtaining certification through a regulatory agency is one part of the overall process. Manufacturers also need to understand the customs laws for importing their product, tariff regulations (if applicable), and the requirements for obtaining import releases.
- What is the country’s power grid voltage requirement? Different nations run at different voltages and frequencies. It is essential to understand what those are in prospective markets and to modify equipment accordingly before beginning the application process.
- Does the country participate in a mutual recognition agreement? This is a critical question to ask as more and more countries allow certificates from trade partners to qualify for certification in their own country. EU countries, for example, all conform to the same mandatory certifications and accept certificates, test reports, and declarations of conformity from other EU states. Similarly, many countries around the world recognize testing and certifications issued by the FCC in the U.S., which significantly helps accelerate the certifications process for manufacturers looking to sell in those countries.
- What pending regulation changes exist that may change how you do business in the country? Countries change their regulatory requirements all the time, and these changes can have dramatic impacts on manufacturers. For example, a recent change in India set to take effect in October of 2018 states that the country will no longer accept testing certificates from the FCC, and that all manufacturers must submit their equipment for testing with the local regulatory agency. Foreign manufacturers who accessed the Indian market through the existing mutual recognition agreement will need to restart their certification process from the beginning and complete it by October 2018.
- What documents do manufacturers need to declare compliance? Each country differs in the amount of paperwork they require to declare a foreign manufacturer compliant. It is essential to know what all is needed to achieve compliance.
Once a manufacturer begins the certification process, there will likely be many additional rules and regulations surrounding the certification process itself. Manufacturers seeking to sell in specific countries will need to know the following pieces of information while applying for certification of compliance:
- What rules apply to the import of equipment after it has received certification? These rules will vary, but invariably will include market surveillance requirements, marking requirements, and applications for permits to import and store the equipment.
- Are there any publications by the country to specify application and approval procedures? Manufacturers need to understand the limits behind their certification of approval, including the length and term of validity certificates, where the certificates are held, and what regulatory bodies handle the ongoing oversight of the certificate.
- What are the fees for the certification process? Most countries charge a service fee of some kind for the approval process.
- What procedures exist to enforce the terms of the certificate? Most countries have follow-up procedures to ensure ongoing regulatory compliance by foreign manufacturers. These include shipment inspections, factory follow-ups, and maintenance programs, all of which typically carry associated fees.
- How long will the application process take? This is a hard question to answer because different countries vary widely in their timeline. It will likely take less time to obtain approval and certification in stable countries with the resources to provide the necessary human resources to handle the certification process. Less stable nations with fewer resources and less manpower will take much longer. It is essential to know what the average certification timetable looks like in a given country.
- What dispute resolution procedures exist, if any? In the event of a denial of certification, it is of the utmost importance to know what systems exist to contest the denial. Most countries have dispute resolution procedures.
- What modifications can be made to the equipment without needing to restart the certification process? Manufacturers make small changes to their products frequently. Therefore, it is essential to know what modifications are allowed in a given country’s certification that will not trigger another certification process.
Still overwhelmed by regulatory compliance? We can help.
While many companies and manufacturers have dedicated regulatory compliance departments, many do not. Hiring staff for organizational compliance work is expensive, and most companies do not need full-time staff to handle compliance. That’s why most companies outsource their compliance work to dedicated global compliance companies. Global compliance companies have the expertise to make the certification process for a given product painless, and they save on cost because they save your company time. If your company wishes to sell products abroad, reach out to our dedicated staff at iCertifi, and one of our global compliance specialists will help you develop an actionable plan.