New ruling in the case of ‘Free access to harmonised standards’

On 21 April 2026, the Court of Justice of the European Union published a further judgment that could be of significance to users of standards. Like the much-discussed “Malamud” case, Case C-155/24 concerns the provision of standards free of charge as part of EU law.

In March 2024, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) caused a stir with its ruling, in which it decided that access to requested harmonised standards in the Official Journal of the EU (including under the Toy Safety Directive 2009/48/EC), as discussed in the “Malamud” case, must be granted. The national standardisation bodies subsequently set up so-called platforms to facilitate access.

The current case similarly concerns the question of whether free access to standards must be guaranteed when an EU directive on health protection refers to such a document. Although the case in question concerned cigarettes under the Tobacco Products Directive, the reaction from bodies such as CEN/CENELEC suggests that the ruling could also become relevant for mechanical engineering standards.

Below, we have summarised the key details of the ruling.
 

Background

A Dutch foundation working to prevent smoking among young people called on the Netherlands Authority for Food and Consumer Safety (NVWA) to ensure that filter cigarettes in the Netherlands comply with the maximum limits for certain emissions. These limits are set out in the European Tobacco Products Directive 2014/40/EU, which in turn refers to measurement procedures defined in international ISO standards.
 

Judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU)

In its judgment of 21 April 2026, the Court clarified that where an EU directive – such as the Tobacco Products Directive 2014/40/EU on the protection of health in relation to cigarettes – refers to international standards, individuals must have access to those standards. This access must be free, effective, free of charge and non-discriminatory, so that those affected can verify whether legal requirements are being met.

It was also established that even if the standards have not been published in the Official Journal of the EU, they remain applicable. This means that if an individual wishes to check whether the limit values for harmful substances in cigarettes are being complied with, they must adhere to the measurement methods set out in the ISO standards.

A person must therefore be granted free access to these standards in accordance with the principle of the rule of law; this access must be general, effective, free of charge and non-discriminatory.

Since the EU legislator imposes obligations regarding the application of international standards, it must also bear the costs of providing free access to the official and binding version of these standards. This applies in particular where these standards are protected by intellectual property rights.
 

Reaction from CEN/CENELEC

The European standardisation bodies CEN/CENELEC commented and welcomed the judgment immediately following its delivery.

According to them, the ruling provides legal clarity and confirms that the approach to access to standards (“Access Solution”) pursued by CEN and CENELEC is compatible with EU law. According to the ruling, free, effective and non-discriminatory access to standards is possible without posing a hazard to the copyright protection that forms the basis of the standardisation system.

At the same time, copyright protection for standards remains in place even when they become legally binding through citation in EU legal acts or trigger the presumption of conformity through publication in the Official Journal of the EU.

In the case of the standards cited in the judgment, there is therefore, according to CEN/CENELEC, no immediate obligation to publish these standards in the Official Journal of the EU or to organise access to them through EU institutions. Rather, access can be provided via existing EU regulations (Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001) on access to documents and is also sufficiently ensured through the national adoption of international standards.

The EU must bear the costs of free access to such standards, particularly where they are protected by copyright.
 

Links to the ruling

Interested readers can access and read the press release on the court ruling via the following link.

Ruling C-155/24
 

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