View source for UKCA marking

{{Short description|Declaration of conformity with British standards}}
{{Redirect|UKCA|the Chemistry-Aerosol-Climate model|United Kingdom Chemistry and Aerosols model}}
{{Infobox certification mark
| name           = UKCA marking
| caption        =
| expansion      = 
| standards_org  = [[Department for Business and Trade]]
| region         = [[Great Britain]]
| image          = [[File:UKCA filled.svg|100px]]
| founded        = 31 December 2020
| defunct        =
| predecessor    = [[CE marking]]
| successor      = 
| products       = Various
| legalstatus    = 
| mandatorysince = 
| homepage       = {{URL|https://gov.uk/guidance/using-the-ukca-marking}}
}}
[[File:Earbuds with UKCA marking.jpg|thumb|right|An earbud case with the UKCA conformity mark]]
The '''UKCA marking''' (an [[abbreviation]] of '''UK Conformity Assessed''') is a [[conformity mark]] that indicates conformity with the applicable requirements for products sold within [[Great Britain]].<ref name="2019/696/schedule33">{{Cite legislation UK |type=si |year=2019 |number=696 |si=The Product Safety and Metrology etc. (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 |schedule= 33|date= |access-date=2020-08-28}}</ref> The government  intended that it should replace the [[CE marking]] for products sold in Great Britain. Both markings continue to be accepted in the UK market.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://feta.co.uk/news-events/news/ce-marking-to-continue-to-be-recognised-in-great-britain-for-a-further-two-years|title=CE Marking to continue to be recognized in Great Britain for a further two years|first=Martyn|last=Cooper|date=18 November 2022|newspaper=[[Federation of Environmental Trade Associations|FETA]]}}</ref>

==Applicability of UKCA and CE marks==

The UKCA marking became part of UK law at the end of the [[Brexit transition period]], on 31 December 2020, with the coming into force of The Product Safety and Metrology etc. (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019<ref name="2019/696/reg1">{{cite web |title=The Product Safety and Metrology etc. (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 |url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2019/696/regulation/1 |website=legislation.gov.uk |publisher=[[The National Archives]] |access-date=6 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.ft.com/content/16a10238-2524-46ac-a659-a48c0b00c96b|title=Manufacturers urge government to clarify UK's new standards regime|first=Peter|last=Foster|date=20 July 2020|newspaper=Financial Times}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://constructionworx.co.uk/what-brexit-holds-for-construction-equipment-manufacturers-the-future-regulatory-landscape|publisher=Construction Equipment Association|date=2020-08-12|title=What Brexit holds for construction equipment manufacturers – The Future Regulatory Landscape|archive-date=2021-10-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211021190920/https://constructionworx.co.uk/what-brexit-holds-for-construction-equipment-manufacturers-the-future-regulatory-landscape|url-status=dead}}</ref> which was intended to replace the CE marking.

The UKCA marking also intended to replace the reversed epsilon{{efn|{{unichar|025C}}}} marking used on [[aerosol spray dispenser|aerosol sprays]] and measuring container bottles.<ref name="gov" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://echa.europa.eu/legislation-profile/-/legislationprofile/EU-AEROSOL_DISPENSERS|title=Aerosol Dispensers Directive|access-date=28 May 2024}}</ref>

The Government planned for UKCA compliance to be a mandatory requirement since then, but the [[CE mark]] was accepted as an alternative, initially for the transition period until 1 January 2022.<ref name="GovUK-14Nov22">{{cite web|last=UK Government|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/businesses-to-be-given-uk-product-marking-flexibility|date=2022-11-14|title=Businesses to be given UK product marking flexibility}}</ref> This deadline for including the UKCA mark was extended to 1 January 2023, then to 31 December 2024, and then on 1 August 2023 the government effectively withdrew the requirement for UKCA, and stated that the CE mark remains acceptable for most goods as a valid sign of conformance.<ref name=gov>{{cite web | title=CE marking guidance| website=UK Government| date=1 August 2023| url=https://www.gov.uk/guidance/ce-marking}} Click "See all updates" for the various revisions.</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=UK Government|url=https://www.gov.uk/guidance/using-the-ukca-marking |title=Using the UKCA marking|date=11 October 2023 }} See previous update of 24 August 2021.</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=UK to retain EU safety mark in latest Brexit climbdown |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/aug/01/uk-eu-safety-mark-brexit-climbdown |work=The Guardian |first=Joanna |last=Partridge |date=August 2023}}</ref>

The scope and procedures of the UKCA scheme initially follow those for [[CE marking]]. The Government  said that after 31 December 2020 the two schemes may diverge.<ref name=gov />
Initial guidance regarding UKCA marking was originally published by the [[Government of the United Kingdom]] in 2019 ahead of a potential [[no-deal Brexit]] but was subsequently withdrawn.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gov.uk/guidance/prepare-to-use-the-ukca-mark-after-brexit|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200827015712/https://www.gov.uk/guidance/prepare-to-use-the-ukca-mark-after-brexit|archive-date=2020-08-27|title=Prepare to use the UKCA mark after Brexit|orig-date=withdrawn on 30 January 2020|date=2 February 2019|publisher=Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy}}</ref>

==Characteristics of UKCA marking==
The height of the UKCA marking must be at least 5mm; it may be larger so long as the proportions are kept.<ref name="2019/696/schedule33"/> The marking should be "easily visible, legible, and permanently attached to the goods".

The government also intends to bring additional flexibility regarding the placement of the UKCA marking. This may allow the marking to be placed in an accompanying document or sticky label instead, despite the permanent extension of the CE marking in the UK.<ref name="UKCA PDF policy">{{cite web |title=Policy Update: Placing products on the market in Great Britain using UK or EU product markings |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/65b7b54b522b5100138609e1/industry-explainer-placing-products-on-the-market-in-great-britain-using-uk-or-eu-product-markings.pdf |website=GOV.UK |date=January 2024|access-date=27 May 2024}}</ref>

Additionally, the '''Fast-Track UKCA Process''' will be put into place where businesses may put the UKCA marking under the UK regulations or the CE marking under the EU directives. It is not intended to be a mandatory process. <ref name="UKCA PDF policy" />
==Northern Ireland==
{{redirect|UKNI|the social security form of the UK|National Insurance}} <!--UKNI and UK(NI) both redirect here-->
[[File:UKNI Mark.svg|thumb|right|110px|UKNI marking used to supplement CE marking for goods released on to the NI market]]
The UKCA marking only applies to products placed on the market in Great Britain. In [[Northern Ireland]], a part of the United Kingdom that remains aligned to the [[European Single Market]] due to the [[Northern Ireland Protocol]], CE marking continues to be required.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gov.uk/guidance/placing-manufactured-goods-on-the-market-in-northern-ireland-from-1-january-2021|title=Placing manufactured goods on the market in Northern Ireland from 1 January 2021|date=August 2023 |publisher=Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy|quote=In Northern Ireland, EU conformity markings will continue to be used to show that goods meet EU rules after 1 January 2021. For most manufactured goods, this is the CE marking, but there are some other markings for specific products (such as the wheel marking or Pi mark).}}</ref> UK-resident bodies are no longer qualified to carry out CE mark conformity assessments for goods intended for the EU, but under the Northern Ireland Protocol they may do so for Northern Ireland. Where a UK body has carried out the assessment for goods intended for Northern Ireland, the product should display both the CE mark and a '''UKNI mark''' (sometimes also called '''UK(NI)''').<ref name="ukni">{{cite web |title=Using the UKNI marking |url=https://www.gov.uk/guidance/using-the-ukni-marking |website=GOV.UK |access-date=20 August 2021}}</ref> However, goods intended for export to the EU must be assessed by an EU-resident body and carry a CE mark (and must not carry the UKNI mark).<ref name="ukni" />{{efn|With that exception, it remains permissible in the UK, the EU and most other jurisdictions for products to carry multiple conformance marks (such as [[FCC mark]], [[CCC mark]] etc.).}}

As part of the British Government's policy of "unfettered access" for "qualifying Northern Ireland goods"{{efn|Defined in ''The Definition of Qualifying Northern Ireland Goods (EU Exit) Regulations 2020''.<ref name="ni-qualifying-goods-def">{{cite web |title=The Definition of Qualifying Northern Ireland Goods (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 |url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2020/1454/made |website=legislation.gov.uk |publisher=[[The National Archives]] |access-date=6 May 2022}}</ref>}} to be sold in Great Britain without restriction, goods may be sold in Great Britain using the relevant Northern Ireland markings and without any additional approvals that would be required for the UKCA marking.<ref name="ukni"/>

==Accepted markings on each market==
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Market
!Accepted marking(s)
|-
|Goods placed on the market in [[Great Britain]]
|
* CE or UKCA
|-
|Goods placed on the market in [[Northern Ireland]]
|
* CE (if using an EU notified body)
* CE and UKNI (if using a UK conformity assessment body){{efn|name=UKNI|If the UKNI marking is used, it must be used alongside the CE marking, and may not be placed on the [[EEA]] market. In other words, it is not permissible to use the UKNI marking alone and any product with the UKNI marking cannot be exported to the EEA.}}
|-
|Qualifying goods from Northern Ireland placed on the market in Great Britain
|
* CE, or CE and UKNI{{efn|name=UKNI}}
|-
|Goods placed on the market in the [[European Economic Area]]
|
* CE{{efn|The UKCA or other conformity mark(s) may appear alongside this but the UKNI mark must not appear on goods intended for the [[EEA]] market<ref name="ukni"/>}}
|}

==See also==
* [[Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals#In non-EU countries]] for the proposed "UK REACH".
* [[European Committee for Standardization]] and [[European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization]]: the UK remains a member of these European Standards bodies.<ref>{{cite web |title=CEN and CENELEC agreement on UK membership safeguards compatibility of standards and seamless European market access | url=https://memberportal.bsigroup.com/public/2021/june/cen-and-cenelec-agreement-on-uk-membership-safeguards-compatibility-of-standards-and-seamless-european-market-access/ |date=28 June 2021 |access-date= 5 May 2022 |publisher=[[British Standards Institution]]}}</ref>
* [[Kitemark]] - an early British service quality trademark by the British Standards Institute, first implemented in 1903 

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Certification marks}}

[[Category:Certification marks]]
[[Category:Brexit replacement schemes]]
[[Category:2020 establishments in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Symbols introduced in 2020]]