The Canadian regulatory authority ISED (Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada) has revised the requirements for wireless products.

With the expiry of the transition periods, older versions of the RSS standards lose their validity. This may result in existing test reports having to be revised or supplemented in order to continue to comply with the applicable legal requirements in Canada.

What does this mean for your product?

Products that are manufactured, imported, distributed, rented, offered or sold in Canada must always comply with the applicable technical standards. In concrete terms, this means that as soon as a new version of a standard comes into force and the transition period ends, corresponding proof of conformity with the current version must be available – in the form of an updated test report.

Even if products were already on the market before the end of the transition period, they may only continue to be distributed or sold after the deadline if their conformity with the new standard version can be proven. In many cases, a simple addendum to the existing report will suffice – for example, a supplementary page explaining why the changes made have no effect on the conformity of the product.

Important for manufacturers and importers of Category I devices: A new ISED certification is not required if the product is unchanged and conformity with the latest standard version is documented by an updated test report. This report must be retained by the manufacturer or importer for as long as the product is marketed in Canada and must be submitted to ISED upon request.

If the hardware and/or software of the product has to be changed in order to demonstrate compliance again, the approval procedure must be repeated in addition to the measurements.

This is our service for you

As your partner for accredited radio testing, we proactively support you in the evaluation of your existing test reports and, if required, take the necessary steps to confirm conformity or re-certification.

Our service includes:

• Review of existing test reports where the RSS standard (issue) used is no longer valid.
• Creation of an addendum if the test report still meets the current requirements.
• Evaluation of changes in the standard – e.g. stricter limit values or new test methods – and corresponding marking in the addendum.
• If necessary: Retesting and complete update of the documentation

What changes might have occurred?

• Limit values have been relaxed
  • Validity continues, confirmation by addendum
• Limit values have been tightened
  • Check measured values; retest may be required
• Requirements have been changed
  • Retest required

Das Addendum oder die Bewertung dient je nach Fall entweder als formaler Nachweis der Konformität oder als Prüfplan für ggf. notwendige Nachmessungen.

Depending on the case, the addendum or the assessment serves either as formal proof of conformity or as a test plan for any necessary subsequent measurements.

Legal basis and further information

• Section 4(3) of the Radiocommunication Act requires equipment to comply with the standards in force at the time of manufacture, importation, distribution or sale.
• Section 5(1)(d) of the Radiocommunication Act empowers the Minister to set technical standards.
• Section 2.1 of the Radiocommunication Regulations states that the applicable standards are set out in the current lists for Category I and Category II equipment – available on the ISED website.

What are the next steps?

We recommend that you have your existing test reports checked by us at an early stage to ensure legal compliance of your products in Canada.

We would be happy to advise you personally – please get in touch with your personal contact or write to us at: mail@cetecomadvanced.com