EEE Technical Standards 2025: What Manufacturers and Exporters Must Review

Key data

If your company manufactures, certifies or sells products in the European Economic Area, this update affects you directly. Decision 284/2025 of the EEE Joint Committee, adopted on 5 December 2025, amends Annex II of the EEE Agreement, which regulates the technical regulations, standards, testing and certification applicable in the common area formed by the EU plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

The mechanism is the usual one in the EEE: when the EU approves new technical standards, the Joint Committee decides whether to incorporate them into the EEE Agreement so that they also become mandatory in the three non-EU countries of the area. This decision does exactly that: it extends the new EU technical standards to Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

What does this regulation establish?

Decision 284/2025 amends Annex II of the Agreement on the European Economic Area, which is the annex dedicated to technical regulations, standards, testing and certification of products. Through this amendment, new EU technical standards are incorporated into the EEE legal framework.

The practical effect is that the technical standards and certification procedures that were already mandatory in the 27 EU countries become equally mandatory in the three non-EU EEE countries. This ensures that the rules of the game are the same throughout the European economic area.

Companies must verify what specific EU technical standards have been incorporated through this decision, as it may affect the standards applicable to their products or the certification procedures required.

Economic and operational impact

The impact is not a direct fine or fixed cost: it is a risk of commercial blockade. If your company's products do not comply with the new technical standards incorporated into Annex II, they may encounter barriers to free trade within the EEE. This means, in practical terms, that they cannot be marketed in Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein—and potentially not in EU markets either if the technical standards affected also apply there.

The resulting operational costs may include:

• Review and update of product technical documentation
• New testing or conformity assessment if standards have changed
• Update of existing certifications with notified bodies
• Time spent by quality and compliance departments on review
• Possible delays in commercialization if non-compliance is detected

The actual cost will depend on how many of the company's products are affected by the specific technical standards that have been updated, and whether the changes require new testing or simply documentary updates.

Who does it affect?

This decision affects any company operating in the European Economic Area with products subject to technical regulations. Specifically:

• Manufacturers of products marketed in the EEE that are subject to harmonized technical standards
• Importers and distributors that introduce products into the EEE market
• Spanish exporters that sell in Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein
• Certification bodies and testing laboratories that work with EEE technical standards
• Quality and compliance departments of industrial, technological or consumer companies
• CFOs and operations directors who manage the supply chain in the EEE area
• Legal advisors and standardization consultants who support companies in certification processes

Practical example

A Spanish manufacturer of electrical equipment that regularly exports to Norway must verify whether any of the harmonized technical standards applicable to its products—for example, those relating to electromagnetic compatibility, electrical safety or energy efficiency—has been updated through this Decision 284/2025.

If the technical standard that supports the CE certification of one of its products has been revised and the new version has been incorporated into Annex II of the EEE, the company will need to:

1. Check whether its product still complies with the updated version of the standard
2. Update the declaration of conformity if necessary
3. Contact its notified body if the product requires third-party certification

Failure to do so may mean that the product cannot be marketed in Norway until compliance with the new standards is demonstrated, resulting in a sales blockade in that market.

What should companies do now?

1. Identify affected products: review the catalog of products marketed in the EEE and determine which are subject to harmonized technical standards included in Annex II of the EEE Agreement.
2. Consult the text of Decision 284/2025: access the full text on EUR-Lex (reference OJ:L_202600626) to identify what specific EU technical standards have been incorporated into Annex II.
3. Review current certifications: verify with the quality department whether current certifications remain valid under the new incorporated standards.
4. Contact notified bodies if applicable: if any product requires third-party certification and the applicable technical standard has changed, initiate the update process with the corresponding notified body.
5. Update technical documentation: ensure that declarations of conformity and technical files reflect the standards in force after the incorporation of the new standards.
6. Establish a monitoring system: the EEE Joint Committee adopts standard incorporation decisions on a periodic basis. Implement a process to monitor these updates to anticipate future changes.