BCCA BREXIT information

The United Kingdom has left the EU Single Market and Customs Union

Since 1 January 2021, the United Kingdom left the EU Single Market and Customs Union.

As a result, the United Kingdom will no longer benefit from the principle of free movement of goods in the EU Single Market. 

Even with the new EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement in place, manufacturers will face new trade barriers.

 Under the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement, goods lawfully placed on the EU market before the end of the transition period (31 December 2020) can continue to circulate until they reach their end user, whether they are in the UK or the EU, provided that these products:

-       are covered by a harmonised European standard, which is the same as a UK designated standard (see below)

-       are affixed with CE marking

-       are accompanied by a manufacturer’s declaration of performance

-       have been assessed by an EU-recognised notified body, in cases where third party assessment is required.

In the United Kingdom, the Construction Products (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 apply. The UK regulations strongly resemble Regulation (EU) 305/2011 (CPR), but apply for the UK internal market.

? Consult the Construction Products (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 [The Construction Products (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (legislation.gov.uk)]

For the UK, all existing harmonised European standards have become UK ‘designated standards’. This will mean that immediately after the end of the transition period (31 December 2020) harmonised European standards and UK designated standards will be identical. If regulatory requirements change, differences will appear in standards. As far as we have been able to check, these standards correspond with the most recent list of EU harmonised standards.

? Consult the list of UK designated standards, published on 18 December 2020 [https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/946196/ds-0035-21-construction-products-notice.pdf]

 For construction product manufacturers, it is important to be able to predict what will happen with product standards. Will the UK start developing its own standards or will the UK continue to use European standards and for how long. The EU-UK Trade deal does not provide this kind of detail, so this is something that will be addressed later.

For more information over :

1. The consequences of the UK leaving the EU Single market and Customs Union for the conformity marking of construction products
2. Several scenarios explaining which legislation will apply to your product, what marking is needed and which conformity assessment body you may need to assess your product, before placing it on the relevant market

See here :http://www.bcca.be/content/doc/BrexitInfo_032021_EN.pdf