The elimination of technical barriers in Europe

The free movement of goods and services is a key objective of the European Union

National technical regulations can lead to technical barriers to trade and to the free movement of goods and services.

To prevent the adoption of technical regulations that create unwarranted trade barriers between states, a notification procedure has been established to promote transparency. 

Notification

Before adopting technical regulations related to products and to information society services, a member state of the European Union shall notify the European Commission of these draft technical regulations.

This notification procedure is managed by the European Commission.

The FPS Economy centralises notifications for Belgium. 

Review of the drafts

The European Commission and member states of the WTO have three months to examine and comment on barriers to free movement.

During this period, these projects:

• cannot be modified, adopted or published;
• can be viewed by:
  • la Commission européenne;
  • les autorités de tous les états membres;
  • toute personne intéressée.

Reactions

The Commission and member states’ authorities can make:

• comments, which do not extend the standstill period;
• detailed opinions, which require the recipient to maintain the standstill period and take into account the objections.

The authorities that have notified a technical regulation must take into account the detailed opinions:

• by repealing the text;
• by adjusting the text accordingly;
• by justifying the provisions.

If there are comments, the text should be amended insofar as possible.