§2.10 Transitional periods in the case of new or revised EU rules

In the case of new or revised legislation, economic operators may be given additional time to adapt to the new rules which is called transitional period and correspond to the lapse of time between the entry into force of a new rule and the moment it starts applying. Transitional period means that the existing product rules remain applicable although new rules have been already adopted. Transitional period may be introduced by the legislator when EU product rules are being revised or come to replace national rules. The aim of the transitional period is to allow manufacturers, national authorities and notified bodies to adjust gradually to the conformity assessment procedures and the essential or other legal requirements set up by a new or a revised piece of legislation, and, thus, to avert the risk of blocking production. Further, manufacturers, importers and distributors need to be given time to exercise any rights they have acquired under any pre-existing, national or EU rules, for example to sell their stocks of products manufactured in line with the pre-existing rules. Finally, the transitional period provides for extra time for the revision and adoption of harmonised standards, even though this is not a precondition for the application of Union harmonisation legislation. Each Union harmonisation legislation providing for a transitional period sets the date for freezing the system in force. Generally, this is the date on which the legislation enters into force, but sometimes it is the date on which the legislation is adopted. After the transitional period, products manufactured before or during this period, in line with the legislation to be repealed, may no longer be placed on the market. A product, which is placed on the market before the end of the transitional period, should be allowed to be made available on the market or put into service. (100) Nevertheless, specific Union harmonisation legislation could forbid the making available of such products if this is deemed necessary for safety reasons or other objectives of the legislation. Products which were not placed on the market before the end of the transposition period can only be placed on the market or put into service, if they fully comply with the provisions of the new legislation (101). According to the general rule, CE marking is an indication that products, which are subject to one or several pieces of Union harmonisation legislation providing for its affixing, conform to the provisions of all these applicable legislations. However, where one or more of these pieces of legislation allow the manufacturer, during a transitional period, to choose which arrangements to apply, the CE marking is an indication of conformity only to the legal texts applied by the manufacturer. Consequently, during a transitional period, the CE marking does not necessarily indicate that the product conforms to all applicable pieces of legislation providing for its affixing. Information concerning all Union harmonisation legislation applied by the manufacturer has to be found in the EU Declaration of Conformity (102).

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-09-07