Personal protective equipment

EU type examination

In the EU-type examination (module B), a notified body assesses the technical design of the PPE and the conformity of a specimen of the PPE. The notified body issues an EU-type examination certificate for PPE that meets the relevant requirements.

The maximum period of validity of an EU-type examination certificate is five years. The manufacturer must ask the notified body to review the EU-type examination certificate if

• the manufacturer has modified the product
• changes in the state of the art such as the publication of a new standard version have taken place
• at the latest, before the date of expiry of the certificate.

The EU-type examination (module B) is described in more detail in Annex VIII to the PPE Regulation.

How do I ensure that the EU-type examination certificate I have is legitimate?

• Make sure that the document is called an EU-type examination certificate. For example, documents with titles such as “Certificate of conformity” or “Certificate of compliance” are not documents required by the PPE Regulation.

• Check that the notified body issuing the EU-type examination certificate is listed in the Commission’s NANDO database, and that it has the authority to issue type examination certificates under the PPE Regulation (Legislation: Regulation (EU) 2016/425 Personal protective equipment).
• Check that the product specified in the certificate is identical to the product you are intending to purchase, i.e. the product, type, batch or serial number match the information on the EU type-examination certificate.
• Compare the date of issuing the certificate to your previous communication. If the certificate has been issued recently but you have been in talks over the sale for a longer period, ask for details about the type-examination procedure.
• Check that the certificate has an end date of validity and that the end date is no more than 5 years after the certificate’s date of issue.
• Compare the language used in the certificate to that in the PPE Regulation. Assess the certificate’s overall appearance in terms of typeface, structure and spelling. Official certificates are generally clearly structured and free of spelling errors. Check the certificate’s headers and footers and possible watermarks and compare their images and logos with those found on the notified body’s website.