UKCA Mark – what is it?

14th September 2021

Following the UK’s departure from the European Union, the UKCA (UK Conformity Assessed) marking is the new UK product marking used for goods being placed on the market in Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland). It covers most goods which previously required the CE marking. The requirement for UKCA marking came into effect on 1 January 2021 but to allow businesses time to adjust to the new requirements, products made after this date can still use CE marking alone until 1 January 2023.

UKCA marking applies to most goods previously subject to the CE marking. The technical requirements products must meet are largely the same as they were for the CE marking.
The vast majority of manufacturers can use self-declaration of conformity for UKCA marking just as they did for CE marking, providing the product has been made to the relevant standard (in the case of sunglasses that’s BS EN ISO 12312-1:2013). The new requirement does not apply to existing stock; if it was manufactured and CE marked before 1 January 2021 it can still be sold in Great Britain with a CE mark, even after the 1 January 2023.

The UKCA marking is not recognised on the EU market. For that reason, unless a product is only going to be sold in GB, you will likely see both CE and UKCA marks applied to products including sunglasses and eyewear.