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Restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances (RoHS) directive

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  Directive

Restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances (RoHS) Directive (2011/65/EU)

  Scope

This Directive shall, subject to paragraph 2, apply to EEE falling within the categories set out in Annex I.


ANNEX I

Categories of EEE covered by this Directive

  1. Large household appliances.
  2. Small household appliances.
  3. IT and telecommunications equipment.
  4. Consumer equipment.
  5. Lighting equipment.
  6. Electrical and electronic tools.
  7. Toys, leisure and sports equipment.
  8. Medical devices.
  9. Monitoring and control instruments including industrial monitoring and control instruments.
  10. Automatic dispensers.
  11. Other EEE not covered by any of the categories above.

EXCLUSIONS

This Directive does not apply to:

  • Equipment which is necessary for the protection of the essential interests of the security of Member States, including arms, munitions and war material intended for specifically military purposes;
  • Equipment designed to be sent into space;
  • Equipment which is specifically designed, and is to be installed, as part of another type of equipment that is excluded or does not fall within the scope of this Directive, which can fulfil its function only if it is part of that equipment, and which can be replaced only by the same specifically designed equipment;
  • Large-scale stationary industrial tools;
  • Large-scale fixed installations;
  • Means of transport for persons or goods, excluding electric two-wheel vehicles which are not type-approved;
  • Non-road mobile machinery made available exclusively for professional use;
  • Active implantable medical devices;
  • Photovoltaic panels intended to be used in a system that is designed, assembled and installed by professionals for permanent use at a defined location to produce energy from solar light for public, commercial, industrial and residential applications;
  • Equipment specifically designed solely for the purposes of research and development only made available on a business-to-business basis;
  • Pipe organs;

DEFINITIONS

For the purposes of this Directive, the following definitions shall apply:

  • ‘Electrical and electronic equipment’ or ‘EEE’ means equipment which is dependent on electric currents or electromagnetic fields in order to work properly and equipment for the generation, transfer and measurement of such currents and fields and designed for use with a voltage rating not exceeding 1 000 volts for alternating current and 1 500 volts for direct current;
  • For the purposes of point 1, ‘dependent’ means, with regard to EEE, needing electric currents or electromagnetic fields to fulfil at least one intended function;
  • 'Large-scale stationary industrial tools’ means a large-scale assembly of machines, equipment, and/or components, functioning together for a specific application, permanently installed and de-installed by professionals at a given place, and used and maintained by professionals in an industrial manufacturing facility or research and development facility;
  • 'Large-scale fixed installation’ means a large-scale combination of several types of apparatus and, where applicable, other devices, which are assembled and installed by professionals, intended to be used permanently in a pre-defined and dedicated location, and de-installed by professionals;
  • ‘Cables’ means all cables with a rated voltage of less than 250 volts that serve as a connection or an extension to connect EEE to the electrical outlet or to connect two or more EEE to each other;
  • ‘Homogeneous material’ means one material of uniform composition throughout or a material, consisting of a combination of materials, that cannot be disjointed or separated into different materials by mechanical actions such as unscrewing, cutting, crushing, grinding and abrasive processes;
  • ‘Medical device’ means a medical device within the meaning of point (a) of Article 1(2) of Directive 93/42/EEC and which is also EEE;
  • ‘In vitro diagnostic medical device’ means an in vitro diagnostic medical device within the meaning of point (b) of Article 1(2) of Directive 98/79/EC;
  • ‘Active implantable medical device’ means any active implantable medical device within the meaning of point (c) of Article 1(2) of Council Directive 90/385/EEC of 20 June 1990 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to active implantable medical devices (2);
  • ‘Industrial monitoring and control instruments’ means monitoring and control instruments designed for exclusively industrial or professional use;
  • ‘Spare part’ means a separate part of an EEE that can replace a part of an EEE. The EEE cannot function as intended without that part of the EEE. The functionality of EEE is restored or is upgraded when the part is replaced by a spare part;
  • ‘Non-road mobile machinery made available exclusively for professional use’ means machinery, with an on-board power source or with a traction drive powered by an external power source, the operation of which requires either mobility or continuous or semi-continuous movement between a succession of fixed working locations while working, and which is made available exclusively for professional use.

  Description

RoHS stands for Restriction of Hazardous Substances, and impacts the entire electronics industry and many electrical products as well. The original RoHS, also known as Directive 2002/95/EC, originated in the European Union in 2002 and restricts the use of six hazardous materials found in electrical and electronic products. All applicable products in the EU market since July 1, 2006 must pass RoHS compliance.

Directive 2011/65/EU was published in 2011 by the EU, which is known as RoHS-Recast or RoHS 2. RoHS 2 includes a CE-marking directive, with RoHS compliance now being required for CE marking of products. RoHS 2 also added Categories 8 and 9, and has additional compliance recordkeeping requirements.

Directive 2015/863 was published in 2015 by the EU, which is known as RoHS 3. RoHS 3 adds four additional restricted substances (phthalates) to the list of six.

  Harmonised standards

EN 50581:2012 Technical documentation for the assessment of electrical and electronic products with respect to the restriction of hazardous substances
EN IEC 63000:2018 Technical documentation for the assessment of electrical and electronic products with respect to the restriction of hazardous substances (IEC 63000:2016)
EN 50581:2012
Technical documentation for the assessment of electrical and electronic products with respect to the...
EN IEC 63000:2018
Technical documentation for the assessment of electrical and electronic products with respect to the...

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