To place products on the European market, a CE marking is almost always required. As a Notified Body, we support our customers in ensuring that all their products incorporating radio technologies comply with European standards and regulations for market access.
As a company, we are qualified to assess electrical/electronic products for conformity with the requirements of the European Radio Equipment Directive 2014/53/EU (RED). This creates the foundation for fast CE marking and smooth market entry.
In certain cases, manufacturers can declare CE conformity themselves by issuing an EU Declaration of Conformity. However, in most scenarios, pure self-declaration is neither the safest nor the most efficient path to market access.
In certain areas, conformity assessment by a Notified Body is mandatory. In such cases, independent third-party evaluation is required.
We offer our customers a structured and independent conformity assessment for products using radio technologies. As a notified body, we can provide the following services:
With our support as a Notified Body for RED & EMC, you always have a clear overview of all regulatory requirements relevant to your intended market access. We successfully guide you and your product all the way to the customer.
Many of our customers proactively choose to involve us as a Notified Body in their market access process. This is because errors are often not detected until it is too late—for example, shortly before market launch, in response to a customer inquiry, during import into the EU, or as part of market surveillance.
Voluntary collaboration with cetecom advanced is worthwhile if:
With our expertise as a RED Notified Body, we support you—if needed—even in the early stages of product development to prepare your products for seamless approval in the EEA. This makes market access predictable from the start, while eliminating risks such as costly rework or product corrections.
As a RED Notified Body, we assist customers with the conformity assessment of radio equipment in accordance with the RED. This applies to products that transmit or receive radio waves for the purpose of radio communication or radio location—including many IoT, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, cellular, SRD, NFC, and smart home products.
The RED sets out various requirements regarding:
In short: A radio product must not only function technically, but also be demonstrably safe, use the radio spectrum efficiently, and not cause unacceptable interference to other devices. Otherwise, it does not comply with the standards.
Complete technical documentation is essential for a comprehensive assessment. As part of our work, we typically review the following points:
Whether existing external test reports can be used depends significantly on their quality, currency, completeness, and relevance to the specific product. As a Notified Body, we generally accept test reports from accredited laboratories or from organizations that meet the requirements of ISO/IEC EN 17025 in terms of the measuring equipment used and the competence of their staff.
Cybersecurity is becoming increasingly important for wireless products. The harmonized standards EN 18031-1:2024, EN 18031-2:2024, and EN 18031-3:2024 provide manufacturers with specific guidelines for certain cybersecurity requirements under the RED.
As a RED Notified Body, we support manufacturers in assessing the relevance of the various cybersecurity requirements, identifying the applicable parts of EN 18031, and taking proactive measures early on if necessary.
NANDO (New Approach Notified and Designated Organisations) is the EU’s central source of information on Notified Bodies. Here, as a customer, you can check for which product areas our company has been designated as a Notified Body.
You will also find our company’s four-digit verification code / identification number on our NANDO entry. If you need assistance with electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) or matters related to the Radio Equipment Directive (RED), please feel free to contact us.
A Notified Body is an independent conformity assessment body designated and supervised by the government that is authorized to perform specific tasks under European directives and regulations.
The company cetecom advanced acts as a Notified Body for EU Directives 2014/30/EU (EMC Directive) and 2014/53/EU (Radio Equipment Directive).
No, not necessarily. A Notified Body must only be involved if the applicable EU legal act or the chosen conformity assessment procedure requires an independent third-party assessment.
For radio equipment under the RED, this is typically the case when no suitable harmonized standard for assessing the essential requirements under Articles 3.2 and/or 3.3 of the RED exists, standards are only partially applied, or the product deviates technically from the standard requirements.
However, if all relevant harmonized standards are fully applied, the technical documentation is complete, and the manufacturer can transparently declare CE conformity on their own, then cooperation with a Notified Body is not mandatory.
In the field of EMC, the involvement of a Notified Body is often voluntary, but in our experience, it can certainly be worthwhile for additional assurance.
Each Notified Body decides for itself whether to accept non-accredited test reports. At cetecom advanced, we accept external test reports from accredited laboratories or from facilities that meet the requirements of ISO/IEC EN 17025 with regard to the measuring equipment used and the qualifications of their staff.
Notified Bodies are designated by the competent national authority of an EU Member State and notified to the European Commission. In Germany, for example, such a “designating authority” is the Central Office of the Federal States for Safety Technology (ZLS) or the Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur).
To become a “Notified Body,” an organization must first demonstrate that it meets the technical, organizational, and legal requirements of the relevant EU legislation.
It is then listed in the European NANDO database along with its scope of activity. There, manufacturers can verify whether a body is designated for the relevant directive, the appropriate procedure, and the specific product category.
CE marking is a prerequisite for market access in the EU for numerous product groups. The “Conformité Européenne” mark certifies that the manufacturer has complied with the relevant EU harmonization legislation.
The GS mark (“Geprüfte Sicherheit,” or “Tested Safety”), on the other hand, is a voluntary German safety mark. It can help build additional trust but does not replace the legally required CE marking.
In short: CE is regulatory market access; GS is an additional voluntary safety certification. If your product falls under a CE-relevant directive, the conformity assessment process must be carried out correctly regardless of any potential GS certification.
