National product requirements, including the principle of mutual recognition

A number of goods placed on the EU market for which no common EU requirements have been set must meet the requirements specified in domestic laws of individual EU Member States. Check when you can place such goods on the market.

Polish technical rules

Polish technical rules (regulations, acts) specifying requirements for a specific product:

Polish technical rules (regulations, acts) specifying general requirements:

Read more about Polish standards on the website of the Polish Committee for Standardization PKN – Polish standards

If you want to place on the EU market a product which is covered by specific national requirements, the Product Contact Point will help you check what requirements apply.

What the principle of mutual recognition of goods involves

The principle of mutual recognition means that each European Union Member State is obliged to allow on its market any product that has been already lawfully placed on the market in another Member State or in a country in the European Economic Area.

Member States of the European Union (EU) are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Latvia, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden.

Member States of the European Economic Area (EEA) are the European Union Member States and Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

The principle of mutual recognition of goods means that:

a product which meets the national requirements of one of the Member States is safe for the consumer and may be placed on the market in all the other European Union Member States
a Member State cannot prohibit the sale on its territory of goods which have been lawfully placed on the market in another Member State.

Please note! A Member State cannot prohibit the sale on its territory of goods which have been manufactured in compliance with the technical rules of another Member State, even if the rules are different from the rules applicable in that Member State.

When the principle of mutual recognition of goods does not apply

The principle of mutual recognition is not absolute. A Member State can restrict the marketing of goods that have been lawfully marketed in another Member State, where such restrictions are justified on the grounds of:

public morality
public policy
public security
protection of health and life of humans, animals or plants
protection of national treasures possessing artistic, historic or archaeological value
protection of industrial and commercial property.

The principle of mutual recognition may also be excluded on the basis of other overriding reasons of public interest, recognised by the case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Union in relation to the free movement of goods.

Please note! A Member State must always clearly justify why market access has been restricted or denied. Such prohibitions or restrictions should not constitute a means of arbitrary discrimination or a disguised restriction on trade between Member States.

Mutual recognition declaration

The declaration is a document in which an economic operator intending to place a product on the market in a specific Member State confirms that the product has already been lawfully placed on the market in another Member State.

The declaration is voluntary – the economic operator, that is the manufacturer, authorised representative, importer or distributor, may or may not draft and sign the declaration.

The declaration is important in the case of goods subject to a prior authorisation procedure. If you submit a complete mutual recognition declaration, including the proof that the product has already been lawfully placed on the market in another Member State, the conformity assessment body cannot demand from you any more information or documents.

The declaration has two parts.

In the first part (Part I) you describe the goods and all provisions which apply in the EU country where the goods are already marketed. In this Part you should provide:

number or another reference marker that uniquely identifies the goods or type of goods
name and address of the manufacturer, importer or distributor filling in Part I of the declaration
description of the goods which should be sufficient to enable the goods to be identified for traceability reasons. You can attach a photo.
a declaration that the goods:
have already been lawfully placed on the market in the EU country X (provide the title and official publication reference of the relevant rules applicable in that Member State and reference of the authorisation decision if the goods were subject to a prior authorisation procedure), or
are not subject to any relevant rules in the EU country X
reference information for every conformity assessment procedure or test done on the goods (including the name and address of the assessment body)
any other documents confirming that the goods have already been lawfully placed on the market in that EU country

In Part II, which applies to the sales of goods, you should provide:

the name of the EU Member State where the goods are already marketed
date when the goods were first marketed in that country (an invoice may be attached as a proof)
any additional information that can help relevant bodies to assess if the goods have already been lawfully marketed in another EU country.

The declaration may be filled in and signed in one of three ways:

the manufacturer or the manufacturer’s authorised representative fills in and signs Parts I and II
the manufacturer or the manufacturer’s authorised representative fills in and signs Part I, and the importer/distributor fills in Part II
the importer/distributor fills in and signs Parts I and II if they are able to submit proof confirming the information included in the declaration.

See a mutual recognition declaration template.

The declaration must be submitted in one of the official languages of the European Union. When placing a product on the market of another EU Member State (state of destination), an economic operator (e.g. manufacturer or importer) shall draft a declaration (or its translation) in the language used in the Member State of destination.

Economic operators who drafted and signed the declaration are responsible for the reliability of the information provided in the declaration.

Important! If untrue information is provided in the declaration or in the attached documents, the competent authorities which carry out the assessment or control of the goods may impose an administrative fine on the economic operator. In Poland the fine may be as much as PLN 100 000. If the goods covered by the declaration are subject also to the requirements specified in the EU law which impose the obligation to attach the EU declaration of compliance, then this declaration must be attached to the mutual recognition declaration. A declaration of compliance is a document issued by the manufacturer or the authorised representative to confirm compliance with specific harmonised EU laws.

Assessment of goods

If a product marketed in another EU country is not subject to a prior authorisation procedure, the competent authorities may at any time decide to carry out the assessment of the goods placed on the market.

The assessment is carried out by the competent authorities of Member States which:

inform the economic operator that an assessment will be carried out and indicate which goods will be assessed
indicate technical rules setting out the requirements for the goods to be assessed.

Important! If the laws require that a relevant authorisation must be issued before a product is placed on the market, the competent authorities will notify the economic operator of that requirement.

inform the economic operator of the option of submitting the mutual recognition declaration.

Check conformity assessment bodies for products:

If the economic operator submits a declaration during the assessment, then the assessment body takes into account test reports or certificates issued by conformity assessment bodies as well as documents and information submitted as part of the declaration.

If an authority has to conduct proceedings to examine the evidence, the decisions should be issued no later than within a month of the initiation of the proceedings. If a case is very complex – the time limit is two months.

Important! You can still sell the product while it is being assessed.

Administrative decision restricting or denying market access

An authority will issue an administrative decision if after the assessment or control it has been found that:

the goods cannot be placed on the market
the distribution of the goods already on the market should be temporarily restricted or prohibited.

In the administrative decision on the goods subject to assessment or control, the authority provides the grounds for the decision. In the decision the authority:

indicates the national technical rules which are the basis for issuing the decision
describes public interest reasons which justify the use of the national technical rules on which the administrative decision is based.

In the administrative decision the authority indicates available appeal measures, i.e. it informs the economic operator where and when an appeal against the decision may be filed. The appeal should be lodged through the authority which issued the contested decision, within fourteen days from the date of receipt of the decision, but special provisions may set other time limits.

In the administrative decision the authority should also inform the economic operator that they can use the SOLVIT network, i.e. the network of out-of-court solutions to problems caused by improper application of EU legislation by EU Member States administration.

An economic operator cannot make the goods available on the Polish market if:

they have received a decision restricting or prohibiting market access for a given product
the goods are being assessed to issue an authorisation which will enable making them available on the market, and the economic operator has not yet received the authorisation
the competent authorities have temporarily suspended access to market after finding that
the goods pose a serious threat to safety or health of persons or the environment
they are essentially prohibited in Poland on grounds of public morality or public security.

The economic operator which has already made the goods available on the Polish market can continue the sales while the assessment by the competent authorities is ongoing.

Product Contact Point in Poland (PCP)

Product Contact Points (PCP) have been set up in each EU Member State.

Product Contact Points provide free-of-charge information on the principle of mutual recognition of goods in the non-harmonised area within 15 business days.

Product Contact Point in Poland

Ministry of Economic Development, Labour and Technology
Department of European Affairs
Plac Trzech Krzyży 3/5
00-507 Warsaw
e-mail: pcp@mrit.gov.pl

The Product Contact Point provides information on:

Polish technical rules (acts, regulations) which specify different requirements for different product categories in the non-harmonised area;
prior authorisation procedures, i.e. the obligation to obtain authorisation before placing specific product categories on the Polish market within the mutual recognition framework;
contact details of national product assessment bodies (including accredited bodies whose test reports and certificates are recognised across the European Union) and/or Polish market surveillance authorities;
appeal measures and review procedures in the event of a dispute between the competent authorities and the economic operator concerning the assessment or control of a product;
contact details of national Product Contact Points operating in other Member States.

The Product Contact Point (PCP) provides information by e-mail. If you need advice on the non-harmonised area, send the PCP query form to pcp@mrit.gov.pl.

Queries may be submitted in Polish and in English.

The list of Contact Points in Member States is available on the European Commission website.

Do you run a business in an EU country, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway? Are your rights under the EU law not respected by public administration? Submit your case to the SOLVIT Centre in Poland and get free-of-charge assistance.

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