1. Introduction
For general consumers, the product trademarking is not something they usually pay attention to, but for exporters and manufacturers of these items, they are extremely crucial. Especially in the areas of the European Union and European Economic Area, certifications like CE are not optional but a necessity. That is why understanding and staying updated about CE certification requirements is important for businesses.
Other parties, like importers, distributors, and technical teams, are also linked with these certifications, and understanding these requirements helps them in better development, testing, and documentation strategies. We are going to explain below the recent requirements of CE certification this year and how to avoid mistakes.
2. What is CE certification?
Conformité Européenne, or CE marking, is a European regulatory requirement standard for maintaining health, safety, and environmental protection. If a product complies with this standard, it is allowed to be sold in the EU and EEA-related markets.
It should be noted that it is a legal confirmation mark rather than a quality mark (often confused) that was evaluated by the authorities and was declared to meet the required criteria.
3. Is CE marking still required in 2026?
Yes. As of 2026, if any product is covered under the 25 applicable EU directives, then this legal confirmation is applicable to that product. It is a legal declaration that every business has to comply with regarding the subject product. If not complied with, businesses can face blocking by customs, their products being withdrawn from sale, or being subject to substantial fines and other stringent enforcement measures.
These standards apply to several product types, such as electronics, medical devices, construction products, machinery, toys, and many common consumer goods. However, not every product comes under the scope, such as ordinary consumer goods outside these categories do not need CE marking.
4.Key CE certification requirements for 2026
4.1 Machinery Directive EU 2023/1230
This regulation is applicable in 2026 and will be fully mandatory in 2027 and states that machinery should comply with revised essential health and safety requirements. The goal of the new revisions is to eliminate or reduce risks associated with the corresponding machines in digitally controlled systems.
Businesses have to prepare a dedicated technical file that will cover a detailed risk assessment and testing against harmonized standards for their products. It will also involve a notified body for higher-risk equipment and have to appear in front of the EU Declaration of Conformity. After completing this process, the product can get the CE mark.
4.2 Radio Equipment Directive
This directive 2014/53/EU states that a manufacturer’s device has to comply with these EN/ETSI standards; it has to be safe for its users, be electromagnetically compatible, and be efficient in its use of the radio spectrum.
Such devices should also protect privacy and should have emergency service access. These include devices using technologies like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 4G/5G, IoT, and wireless camera devices.
This standard also requires working on a technical file, which will include proof of compliance with the above-mentioned EN and ETSI requirements, an EU Declaration of Conformity, and RED requirements with those of EMC, LVD, and RoHS.
4.3 Electrical Equipment Regulation / Low Voltage Directive
This standard covers mains‑powered devices powered by voltages between 50–1000 V AC and 75–1500 V DC and forces manufacturers to comply with standards to avoid hazards like electric shock, fire, and similar related potential hazards.
The standard is most common against devices like cameras, lighting, chargers, and AV/IT gear. Similar to previous standards, this one also requires manufacturers to work on a single technical file where proof of these standards and the EU Declaration of Conformity (issued by the manufacturer) has to be included.
4.4 Medical Devices Regulation
The Medical Devices Regulation (EU) 2017/745 forces devices to be classified by risk from factor I to III. The higher the number, the stricter and more extensive the compliance becomes.
This includes a complete, in-depth review of the technical documentation of that specific device, related quality-management systems, and supporting clinical evidence with this device. The manufacturer has to work on extensive technical files covering clinical evaluation reports, manufacturing data, and risk management for their product.
4.5 Toy Directive
The 2009/48/EC safety directive demands that toy products from manufacturers be safe under normal and foreseeable future conditions. These safety standards cover mechanical, physical, chemical, electrical, and flammability risks, along with hygiene related to the toys.
The companies of these toys have to maintain a technical file in which the EU Declaration of Conformity and technical details of risk assessments and test materials against strict chemical limits in compliance with the standards need to be maintained.
4.6 Construction Products Regulation
These regulations (EU No. 305/2011) are related to cables, insulation materials, windows, and other building-related components and require companies to comply with standards of mechanical strength, fire resistance, and emissions. The compliance process also includes a notified body audit of production control.
These parameters are checked and listed in various testing environments as mentioned in these regulations, and the results are displayed in the Declaration of Performance alongside the CE marking on the product.
4.7 In Vitro Diagnostic Regulation
These regulations (IVDR 2017/746) are specifically designed for testing diagnostic devices such as test kits, their diagnostic software, and analyzers. Similar to the medical device regulations, this one also classifies the regulations from A to D based on their risks.
Manufacturers have to maintain technical documentation in which they have to provide analytical and clinical performance data through structured studies. They are also required to demonstrate a post‑market clinical follow‑up and surveillance system before getting CE marking on their diagnostic products.
5. Major Changes in CE certification during 2026
The core framework of CE certification requirements has remained unchanged in 2026, but there are some subtle changes targeted towards alignment, traceability, and scrutiny levels of these regulations.
First, the high-risk product categories like medical devices, automotive components, and batteries are now more in focus with efforts to improve traceability and digital record-keeping. Even a single component failure in such a product can pose a serious safety implication, which is why there are updates to regulations targeting these product categories.
Secondly, several regulations are now more focused on circular economy and energy-efficiency goals, which require manufacturing to comply with stricter requirements on energy consumption, use of hazardous substances, and recyclability in their products.
And finally, the new CE regulations for importers are even more scrutinized than before. These updated regulations now enforce even more stringent checklists applicable much earlier in the design stage of a product, rather than in its later stages. Moreover, the technical and all compliance-related data needs to be properly translated, easily accessible, and legally structured.
6. Common mistakes in CE certification
You will be surprised to know how many manufacturers got rejected, not because of their product issue but because of errors in administration, procedure, or documentation. In some serious cases, this can lead to customs delays, product recalls, and, in some cases, even bans. These are the most common ones and how to avoid them:
6.1 Wrong Applicability of Regulation
The most common error is using CE marking on products that don’t even need those certifications. Some companies do this and don’t even check whether their products fall within the legal scope.
To avoid this, companies should allocate their product category to the correct EU legislation and only initiate the CE-related steps if they are applicable; otherwise, they can end up with fines and even other strict actions.
6.2 Skipping conformity‑assessment route
Many products end up on the market whose manufacturers affix the CE marking without completing the conformity-assessment route as structured out by the government. This can lead to serious fines, and this error is more sensitive to product categories like medical devices, complex electronics, and machinery items.
6.3 Using Outdated Standards
As mentioned above, the updated compliance is much stricter and has several changes in it. Companies sometimes follow outdated or non-harmonized standards as their resources are more focused on production rather than revisiting the news on the latest CE requirements, which are revised almost every year.
7. Streamline CE Certification Requirements
In today’s hyper-competitive era of businesses, a good product is not enough, as maintaining compliance documentation, its traceability, and repeatable testing are now more important than ever. Manufacturers need to invest in systems that can help them turn these CE requirements into structured and easily scalable workflows.
This is what JETTEST offers to its partners: a high-tech and trusted platform in the business landscape. It specializes in automated testing, burn-in, and next-generation manufacturing automation systems.
But the most relevant offering to businesses engaged in CE certifications is their related compliance for new energy products by offering automated energy test & aging systems. Products like the “low voltage servo driver automatic test equipment” from JETTEST are designed to automate comprehensive testing for low-voltage servo drivers and trace product performance for standards like CE and FCC.
Such products generate accurate performance data, which can be logged and reused in technical files of the CE certification process, giving notified bodies ( and even import auditors) clear evidence of safe and stable product operation.
8. Wrapping Up
CE certification requirements are updated with more scrutinized standards for manufacturers. To deal with that, the most powerful shift for companies to make is to design in CE compliance right from the start and partner with JETTEST to systematically test and generate the technical evidence that EU authorities expect.
