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The guide to the EMC Directive 2014/30/EU (harmonisation of the laws of Member States relating to electromagnetic compatibility) is being published in a new edition! In March 2025, the responsible working group published a draft document, which is expected to be made available on the EU Commission's website in the coming weeks.
This document is currently only available in English, but a German version is expected to follow shortly after the final edition is published.
The second edition of the guide to the EMC Directive mainly contains editorial changes and a few amended definitions and examples.
Passages in section 1.4.3 (Equipment covered by other specific Union legislation), in particular motor vehicle equipment, have been significantly shortened. Instead of the categories A-C, reference is made to the document ‘Application of EMC Directive and/or EU legislation on vehicles (for vehicle equipment)’, which is not yet available.
Section 1.6.1 (Fixed installations) has also been revised in some places: In addition to significantly more detailed definitions, machinery and air conditioning systems have been deleted as examples of such installations.
Section 5.2 (Documentation) has also been extensively amended: The previous examples of equipment to which documentation requirements may apply have been deleted (solar/photovoltaic systems and heating and cooling systems in residential areas) and replaced by a large number of new items of equipment: industrial plants, power plants, power supply networks, telecommunication networks, cable TV networks, computer networks, airport luggage handling installations, airport runway lighting installations, automatic warehouses, storm surge barrier installations (with the control room etc.), wind turbine stations, car assembly plants, water pumping stations, water treatment plants, railway infrastructures.
The table below lists the amended sections and provides a brief explanation of the amendment.
Tip: With the help of the Safexpert document comparison, you can conveniently open the old and new editions of the guidelines in StandardsManager as an interactive correspondence table, filter for changed sections and display the sections side by side in full text. This feature will be available in Safexpert when the final edition of the guide is published.
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1.4.3
Equipment covered by other specific Union legislation
Motor vehicle equipment classified as category A or B or C in the Table of the document with title ‘Application of EMC Directive and/or EU legislation on vehicles (for vehicle equipment)17
Hence the following are totally excluded from the scope of the EMCD:
A. Vehicle and equipment subject to type approval under UNECE Regulation 10;
B. Equipment brought to the market as spare parts which is obviously identified as a spare part by an identification number and is identical and from the same manufacturer as the corresponding original equipment manufacturer (OEM) part for an already type-approved vehicle (see Paragraph 3.2.8 of UNECE Regulation 10);
C. Equipment sold as aftermarket equipment, if within the scope of UNECE Regulation (see diagram in Paragraph 3.2.1 of UNECE Regulation 10) and if it is related to 'immunity related functions' as defined in UNECE Regulation 10; 15 Radio equipment used by radio amateurs would normally satisfy the definition of 'Radio Equipment' in Article 2 of the RED, 16 Detailed information may be found in the RED Guide.
It is noted that equipment, sold as aftermarket equipment, intended for the installation in motor vehicles and is not related to immunity related functions (see paragraphs 2.12 and 3.2.9 of UNECE Regulation 10), needs a DoC under the EMCD; this DoC shall refer to the EMCD as well as to the provisions stipulated in Paragraph 3.2.9 of UNECE Regulation 10
17 Equipment classified as category D or E in the Table of that document is not excluded from the EMCD. However, for category D, the DoC must show that there is respect of the limits in paragraph 3.2.9 of UNECE Regulation 10. (...)
1.5.3
Components/Sub-assemblies
1.6.1
Fixed installations
“Fixed installation” is thus an all-encompassing term that applies, for example, to the smallest residential electrical installation, as well as to all commercial and industrial installations that have been constructed with the intention of being permanent.
Considering the definition of the ‘fixed installation’, in the EMCD , a fixed installation for the EMCD is:
A commercial or industrial installation, or an installation designed for residential or commercial use, falls within the scope of the EMCD, if it meets the above criteria. It is normally expected that such a combination of several different apparatus and devices can be installed and put into service, as a ‘fixed installation’, if specific design drawings of the installation have first been made (such drawings can be made by the manufacturer of the apparatus or the installer who can be professional or non-professional). The EMCD excludes “inherently benign” equipment (apparatus or fixed installation) and hence installations that are ‘benign’ are excluded from the EMCD. However, “a-priori” a predefined type of fixed installation will be ‘benign’ in rare situations and such an exclusion should, after assessing the relevant elements , applied on a case–by-case basis.
Indicative examples of fixed installations are: Industrial plants, power plants, power supply networks, telecommunication networks, cable TV networks, computer networks, airport luggage handling installations, airport runway lighting installations, automatic warehouses, skating hall ice rink machinery installations, storm surge barrier installations (with the control room etc.), wind turbine stations, car assembly plants, water pumping stations, water treatment plants, railway infrastructures, air conditioning installations. (...)
4.3.2.2
Relevant harmonised standards
5.1
Essential Requirements
5.2
Documentation
Guidelines, such as the one discussed here or the guidelines on other EU directives, play an important role in interpreting legal requirements and are valuable sources of information in practice for anyone working with the relevant directives and regulations.However, guidelines do not have the force of law! Only the legal acts published in the Official Journal of the European Union remain legally binding.
The English version of the draft for the new EMC guidelines can be accessed via the following link:
Guide for the EMCD (March 2025)
Posted on: 2025-05-13
Daniel Zacek-Gebele, MSc Product manager at IBF for additional products and data manager for updating standards data on the Safexpert Live Server. Studied economics in Passau (BSc) and Stuttgart (MSc), specialising in International Business and Economics. Email: daniel.zacek-gebele@ibf-solutions.com
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