SGS : Taiwan RoHS Becomes Part of the BSMI Certification Compliance Assessment

The implementation of Taiwan's RoHS follows the publishing, in July 2013 by the Bureau of Standards, Metrology and Inspection (BSMI), of CNS 15663 - Guidance on the reduction of the restricted chemical substances in electrical and electronic equipment (EEE). This document set maximum concentration values (MCV) for six hazardous substances found in nine types of EEE. The Taiwan RoHS has MCV's that are the same as those contained within the European Union's (EU) RoHS, although it does not cover phthalates, which are included under EU regulations.

Taiwan RoHS covers:

• Lead (Pb)
• Mercury (Hg)
• Cadmium (Cd)
• Hexavalent Chromium (Cr)
• Polybrominated Biphenyls (PBB)
• Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDE)

Taiwan's RoHS standard requires suppliers of EEE to check for hazardous substances, using methods CNS 15050 or IEC 62321. Furthermore, the standard compels proper labeling on the body of the product, packaging, stickers, and/or the instruction manuals for the product.

The RoHS standard can be seen as an addition to the product inspections standards already set by the BSMI for EEE imported into Taiwan. These cover safety regulations, electromagnetic compatibility and related tests, and must be completed before authorization can be given to use the BSMI Commodity Inspection (CI) Mark. Products entering Taiwan must undergo BSMI certification, sanctioned by a product inspection and registration supervision. Certification will last for a period of three years.

The BSMI issued, in December 2015, a notice to include Taiwan RoHS marking requirement in the inspection standard for various types of EEE. Once a product is covered by the scope of the regulations, 'RoHS' must be included on the CI MARK. Since then, BSMI has gradually expanded the product scopes that require Taiwan RoHS. The new requirements will be implemented in a number of stages:

Taiwan's RoHS will be implemented in a number of stages:

• July 1, 2017 - certain IT and audio/visual products, including: network media players (wired network media players) and projectors; automatic data processing machines; printing and copying machines; televisions; monitors and monitors used in automatic data processing, etc.
• January 1, 2018 - a wide range of EEE, including: self-ballasted fluorescent lamps; plugs and socket-outlets for fixed wiring; IT and audio-video products, including radio keyboard; motor class goods, e.g. single-phase AC motors; home appliances, e.g. electric blankets; water dispensers; power supplies, battery chargers for computer, communication and consumer electronics; AC supplied electronic ballasts for fluorescent lamps; printing and copying machines (new listed goods)
• July 1, 2018 - eight more items, including air conditioners and lighting

For those listed products, the RoHS requirement has been added into the BSMI certification process and the RoHS restricted substances in the product shall be determined. The enterprise shall meet the following requirements:

1. Performing conformity assessment by either Registration of Product Certification (RPC) Scheme or Type-approved Batch Inspection (TABI) Scheme
2. Determining the content of hazardous substance according to test method CNS 15050 or IEC 62321
3. The Commodity Inspection Mark and RoHS label in packages:

• 'RoHS' indicates the content of restricted substance(s), other than exemptions stated in CNS 15663, does not exceed the reference percentage value of presence condition
• 'RoHS(XX,XX)' indicates the content of restricted substance(s) (element XX, element XX, …), other than exemptions stated in CNS 15663, exceeds the reference percentage value of presence condition
• The letter 'R', of 'R30001', indicates RPC scheme used for conformity assessment procedures; a 'T' would indicate TABI scheme was used for conformity assessment procedures

Table 1: An Example of Product Marking for a Product Where Restricted Substances Exceed Limits

Suppliers of EEE to the Taiwanese market must submit relevant documents, for example testing reports, quality control documents, within 28 days of a request from the BSMI. Documents must be submitted by a laboratory accredited under ISO 17025 and all tests must be conducted in accordance with IEC 62321, CNS 15050 or equivalent standards.

SGS Solutions: RoHS Services

With 28 internationally accredited laboratories around the globe and over 1,000 specialists in the field, SGS assists suppliers of EEE in achieving certification to RoHS standards around the world. We offer advisory services on requirements and compliance solutions to support companies affected by RoHS regulations, be it for their conformity assessment or risk management in the supply chain. SGS also offers a voluntary certification scheme - the SGS RoHS Certificate. For more information on RoHS services, visit SGS RoHS.

For further information contact:

Sharon Chan
SGS Taiwan Ltd
t: +886 (02) 2299-3939

Kevin Liao
SGS China
t: +86 0512 6299 2295
www.sgs.com/ee

About SGS

SGS is the world's leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 90,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 2,000 offices and laboratories around the world.