RoHS Directive

Restricted substances in the RoHS directive

RoHS applies to all electrical and electronic equipment (EEE), such as household appliances, lighting, cables, electrical toys and much more.

The RoHS Directive currently restricts the use of the following substances:

  • Lead (Pb)
  • Mercury (Hg)
  • Cadmium (Cd)
  • Hexavalent chromium (Cr6+)
  • Polybrominated biphenyls (PBB)
  • Polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE)
  • Bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP)
  • Butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP)
  • Dibutyl phthalate (DBP)
  • Diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP)

 

The RoHS and WEEE Directives

In order to control waste from electrical and electronic equipment, EU countries have put in place two important directives: WEEE and RoHS, already back in 2002.

RoHS is the EU directive that regulates the ‘Restriction of Hazardous Substances’ in electrical and electronic equipment. Directive 2011/65/EU (“RoHS 2”) is the current version of the RoHS directive, that replaced the initial Directive 2002/95/EC (“RoHS 1”). The second one was published on 21 July 2011 and came into effect on 2 January 2013. In 2015 the list of restricted substances has been extended to ten substances with the addition of four plasticisers or phthalates, published in amending Directive 2015/863 (aka “RoHS 3”). The restrictions for these four substances (DEHP, BBP, DBP and DIBP) apply since 22 July 2019.

The WEEE Directive sets recycling targets for EU countries. The WEEE Directive also defines the mandatory use of the crossed-out wheeled recycle bin symbol on electrical products.

Compliance clip (PDF) about RoHS Directive

Do you want to know if RoHS applies to your product? With our Platform you create technical files for your products in a very efficient way. The file contains an overview of all requirements that your product will need to comply to in order for you to be able to sell it within the European Union.


Want to learn more about RoHS? make sure to view all our resources

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