The UKCA (UK Conformity Assessment ~ BSEN 1090) mark is the new UK product marking that will be required for certain products being placed on the market in Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland). It covers most products that previously required the CE mark.

It will not be recognized in the EU market. Products that require CE marking will still need a CE marking to be sold in the EU.

The letters “CE” are the abbreviation of French phrase “Conformité Européene” which literally means “European Conformity”. The term initially used was “EC Mark” and it was officially replaced by “CE Marking” in the Directive 93/68/EEC in 1993. “CE Marking” is now used in all EU official documents.

The CE marking is required for many products. It:

• shows that the manufacturer has checked that these products meet EU safety, health or environmental requirements
• is an indicator of a product’s compliance with EU legislation
• allows the free movement of products within the European market

By placing the CE marking on a product a manufacturer is declaring, on his sole responsibility, conformity with all of the legal requirements to achieve CE marking. The manufacturer is thus ensuring validity for that product to be sold throughout the EEA. This also applies to products made in third countries which are sold in the EEA and Turkey.

Not all products must bear the CE marking. Only those product categories subject to specific directives that provide for the CE marking are required to be CE marked.

CE marking does not mean that a product was made in the EEA, but states that the product is assessed before being placed on the market. It means the product satisfies the legislative requirements to be sold there. It means that the manufacturer has checked that the product complies with all relevant essential requirements, for example health and safety requirements.