The application of the appropriate harmonised standards to an apparatus confers on that apparatus a presumption of conformity with the protection requirements of the Directive. In other words, in the case of a challenge, the responsible national authorities will have to prove that the product is not in conformity with the protection requirements of the Directive.

The presumption of conformity is conferred, in regulatory terms, only by the use of the national standards transposing a harmonised standard. Where the relevant standardisation committee has not transposed the standard, use of the original harmonised standard or of a transposed standard in another Member of the EEA confers the same presumption of conformity. However, such transposition must have taken place into the national standards collection of at least one of the Member States of European Community.

European standards are available from :

• CENELEC, rue de Stassart, 35, 1050 Brussels.
• ETSI, 650 Route des Lucioles F-06921 Sophia Antipolis CEDEX-France.
• CEN, rue de Stassart, 36, 1050 Brussels.

National transpositions of harmonised standards are available from the national standardisation bodies.

The list of harmonised standards published in the Official Journal is also available from http://europa.eu.int/comm/dg03/directs/dg3b/newapproa/eurstd/harmstds/index.html

The European Commission issued two standardisation programmes addressed to the European standardisation bodies

The first mandate was addressed to CENELEC (BC/CLC-02/92) and was adopted by the committee established under Directive 83/189 on 7th October 1992

The second was addressed to CEN, CENELEC and ETSI, (M/237) and was adopted by the committee established under Directive 83/189 on 13 December. Within these mandates, the standardisation bodies concerned have to prepare standards covering the electromagnetic emissions and immunity. These standards will define the limits and the test methods that are necessary and sufficient to provide a presumption of conformity with the directive for the apparatus that are built in conformity with the relevant harmonised standards.